THE 


One    Hundredth    Anniversary 


OF  THE  BIRTH  OF 


1809 


1909 


For  the  Schools  of  llUnois. 


SPRIN(JKIELD,  ILL. 
Illinois  Statk  Jou'knal  Co.,  State  Pri.vters 

l^U8 


V 


v^ 


THE 


One  Hundredth  Anniversary 


OF  THE  BIRTH  OF 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


ISSUED  BY 

FRANCIS   G.  BLAIR 

Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 


For  The  Schools  of  IlHnois. 


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4 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN. 

A  blend  of  mirth  and  sadness,  smiles  and  tears; 
A  quaint  knight  errant  of  the  pioneer; 
A  homely  hero,  born  of  star  and  sod; 
A  Peasant  Prince;  a  masterpiece  of  God. 

From  Chicago  Tribune. 
Feb.  12-1907. 


-Walter  Malone. 


A  PROCLAMATION. 


State  of  Illinois,  Executive  Department. 

Springfirld,  December  5,  3908. 

Fel)ruary  13,  1909,  v.ill  be  the  100th  anniversary  of  the  birth  of  Abra- 
ham Lincoln.  Following  the  custom  which  obtains  of  making  the  cen- 
tennial celebration  of  great  events  more  than  usually  impressive,  I  deem 
it  fitting  that  the  citizens  of  Illinois  should  Join  in  a  State-wide  and 
memorable  objervance  of  that  anniversary. 

During  all  of  Lincoln's  mature  life,  he  was  a  citizen  of  Illinois,  and 
its  most  important  incidents,  previous  to  his  life  in  Washington,  occurred 
here.  Here  he  formed  the  most  intim.ate  social  relations  and  the  most 
lasting  friendships  of  his  life.  Here  he  began  the  remarkable  and  bril- 
liant political  career  which  disclosed  to  the  nation  and  to  the  world  the 
splendid  ability  and  noble  character  of  the  great  Illinoisan. 

Lincoln's  name  and  the  great  work  which  he  accomplished  for  our 
nation  and  for  the  cause  of  liberty  and  freedom  everywhere,  are  known 
to  the  world,  and  the  earnestness  and  unanimity  with  which  we  join  in 
this  tribute  to  his  memory  will  be  by  the  world  esteemed  a  measure  of 
our  devotion  to  those  principles.  We  should  make  this  occassion  an 
incentive  to  patriotism  in  our  schools  and  among  our  citizens  and  should 
prize  it  as  an  opportunity  to  show  to  mankind  the  admiration  which  the 
libtrty-loving  people  of  his  State  feel  for  one  of  their  own  number  who, 
wlien  intrusted  with  more  than  kindly  power,  wielded  that  power  for  the 
uplifting  of  the  down-trodden  and  the  oppressed,  and  who  made  our 
country  in  fact  as  well  as  in  name  a  free  and  united  nation. 

Therefore,  I  urge  the  observance  of  the  day  with  appropriate  exer- 
cises by  the  schools  of  the  State  and  by  all  municipal,  civic,  social,  and 
religious  organizations. 

Given  under  my  hand  and  the  great  seal  of  State,  at  Springfield  this 
fifth  day  of  December,  A.  D.,  nineteen  hundred  and  eight. 

Charles  S.  Deneen,  Governor. 
Wy  the  Governor: 

James  A.  Kose,  Secretary  of  State. 


State  of  Illinois^  Department  of  Public  Instruction. 

Springfield,  December  7,  1908. 
To  the  Teachers  of  Illinois: 

Heroes  of  old  came  down  from  the  skies.  Full  of  mystery  they  filled 
the  people  with  awe  and  dread.  Abraham  Lincoln  was  raised  up  from 
amongst  his  people  and  was  like  nnto  them.  He  caught  up  and  em- 
bodied their  soundest  thought,  their  firm  faith  and  conviction,  their 
plain  life  and  rugged  strength.  He  was  the  whole  of  which  they  were 
the  parts.  His  voice  uttered  their  thought.  His  act  expressed  their 
faith  and  conviction.  Thus  was  he  great  in  his  plainness  and  plain 
in  his  greatness.  Like  a  Greek  temple  the  simple  grandeur  of  his  life 
stands  forth  free  from  needless  ornament  or  confusing  detail.  The 
child  heart  warms  strangely  at  the  simple  story  and  the  mature  mind 
finds  it  deep  in  meaning.  Therein  lies  the  great  worth  of  his  life  to  us. 
We  do  not  have  to  alter  and  reduce  the  facts  to  render  them  simple 
enough  for  the  child  and  we  do  not  have  to  enlarge  them  to  hold  the 
mind  of  the  scholar. 

What  is  such  a  life  worth  to  our  boys  and  girls?  Who  can  estimate 
its  value  as  an  educational  force?  Greater  than  all  natural  resources, 
of  more  value  than  all  the  products  of  mine  and  mill  and  factory,  more 
abiding  than  all  the  achievements  of  art  and  science  is  the  life  of  such 
a  man  to  the  nation.  How  it  ties  the  people  together !  How  it  clears 
their  thought  and  shapes  their  feeling !  What  a  unifying,  nationalizing 
force  it  is !  The  children  from  Maine  to  California  become  of  one  heart 
and  one  mind  in  the  study  and  love  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 

And  think  of  the  millions  from  foreign  lands  coming  to  us  with  widely 
differing  antecedents,  with  widely  differing  and  often  conflicting  ideas 
of  society  and  the  State.  Here  is  the  storm  center  of  education.  How 
can  we  engender  common  ideals  of  conduct  and  life?  How  beget  and 
fix  a  feeling  of  kinship,  a  love  of  country,  a  national  spirit? 

The  learning  of  a  common  language  is  the  first  step,  but  beyond  that 
nothing  goes  further  tovvards  creating  a  spiritual  unity  and  a  common 
love  of  country  than  the  story  of  the  lives  of  great  men.  Of  all  our  great 
men  Lincoln  seems  to  make  the  most  direct  and  effective  appeal  to  these 
children.  It  is  easy  to  believe  that  their  first  genuine  feeling  of  love  for 
this  country  may  come  from  their  love  of  this  great  American.  He  be- 
comes the  door  through  which  they  enter  our  national  life.  The  pur- 
pose of  this  programme  is  to  let  a  little  of  the  spirit  of  his  life  and  work 
touch  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the  school  children  of  this  State  and 
country  on  the  one  hundredth  anniversarv  of  his  birth. 

F.  G.  Blair. 

Superintendent. 


Acknowledgments. 


I  wish  to  acknowledge  the  help  of  the  following  persons  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  this  pamphlet : 

Hon.  Clark  E.  Carr,  Galesburg,  Illinois. 

Pres.  Thomas  McClelland,  Knox  College,  Galesburg,  Illinois. 

Hon.   J.   McCan   Davis.   Clerk   of  the   Supreme  Court,   Springfield,    Illinois. 

Prof.  Henry  Johnson,  Columbia  University,  New  York,  N.  Y. 

Mrs.  Jessie  Palmer  Weber,  Librarian,  State  Historical  Library,  Spring- 
field, Illinois. 

Maj.   E.   S.  Johnson,  Custodian  Lincoln  Monument,   Springfield,    111. 

Mr.  Horace  White,  New  York  City. 

Mr.  Robert  J.  Collier,  New  York,  who  gave  permission  to  use  President 
Roosevelt's  letter. 

Mr.  U.  J.  Hoffman,  of  this  office,  who  prepared  the  connected  story  of  the 
early  life  of  Lincoln. 

The  frontispiece  is  a  picture  of  Lincoln  taken  in  1860.     The  picture 

on  the  front  cover  was  taken  in  1864. 


() 


How  TO  Use  This  Material. 


It  is  suggested  that  the  teacher  read  a  part  of  the  biographical  matter 
to  the  children  for  an  opening  exercise  each  morning  preceding  the  an- 
niversary. A  part  of  the  time  might  be  used  to  let  the  children  tell  in 
their  own  words  what  incidents  they  remember. 

The  words  of  Lincoln  should  also  be  read  to  the  children.  From 
these  each  child  should  select  a  saying,  a  sentence,  or  a  paragraph  which 
he  likes  and  commit  it  to  memory. 

The  same  should  be  done  with  the  tributes  to  Lincoln  and  the  state- 
ments of  men  about  him. 

At  least  half  of  the  day  of  February  12th  should  be  given  up  to  public 
exercises,  consisting  of  patriotic  music,  recitations  of  sayings  and  verses 
by  the  children  and  speeches  by  citizens.  The  exercises  should  end  at 
3:30  and  as  a  closing  exercise  all  the  children  might  turn  their  faces  to- 
ward Springfield  and  in  concert  repeat  these  words: 

A  blend  of  mirth  and  sadness,  smiles  and  tears; 

A  quaint  knight  errant  of  the  pioneers; 

A  homely  hero,  born  of  star  and  sod; 

A  Peasant  Prince;    a  masterpiece  of  God. 

:^         :jc         :{: 

With  malice  toward  none; 

With  charity  for  all: 

With  firmness  in  the  right, 

As  God  gives  us  to  see  the  right. 

Let   us   strive   on 

To  finish  the  work  we  are  in; 

To  bind  up  the  nation's  wounds; 

To  care  for  him  who  shall  have  borne  the  battle. 

And  for  his  widov>^  and  orphan — 

To  do  all  which  may  achieve  and  cherish, 

A  just  and  lasting  peace  among  ourselves, 

And  with  all  nations. 

This  pamphlet  should  be  placed  in  the  school  library  of  every  school 
room  that  the  children  may  continue  to  study  the  life  of  this  interesting 
man. 


I. 

ABRAHAM  LINCOLN. 


His  Parents. 


(Jn  the  12tli  day  of  February,  1809  Abraham  Lincoln  was  born.  On 
the  l"2th  day  of  February,  1909  the  people  all  over  our  country  will  stop 
thtir  work  and  give  their  thoughts  to  what  Abraham  Lincoln  was  and 
what  he  did.  President  Theodore  Eoosevelt  will  journey  from  Wash- 
ington to  the  little  farm  in  Kentucky  where  Lincoln  was  born  just  one 
hundred  years  ago  and  voice  the  love  which,  we  all  cherish  for  the  child 
and  the  man.  Mr.  James  Bryce,  the  ambassador  of  England  to  this 
country,  will  go  to  Springfield  where  Abraham  Lincoln  is  buried  and 
will  express  what  the  world  thinks  of  him  and  his  work.  Twenty  mil- 
lions of  school  children  in  America  will,  lay  aside  their  studies  and  will 
heir  the  story  of  his  great  life,  listen  to  his  words  of  wisdom,  and  have 
their  hearts  touched  with  high  resolves  and  noble  purposes. 

]\Iost  of  us  have  heard  stories  about  Daniel  Boouc.  He  was  the  first 
white  man  to  live  in  Kentucky.  He  was  a  courageous  hunter,  and  when 
he  had  to  be,  he  was  a  great  Indian  fighter.  He  was  born  in  Virginia, 
but  removed  to  North  Carolina.  From  there  he  crossed  the  mountains 
into  Kentucky.  Kentucky  was  called  by  the  Indians  ^'the  dark  and 
bloody  ground."  They  did  not  live  there  but  used  it  only  as  a  hunting 
ground.  When  unfriendly  tribes  met  there  they  fought  many  a  bloody 
battle.  Daniel  Boone  spent  a  year  in  the  woods  of  Kentucky  and  had 
a  glorious  time  hunting  deer,  buffalo,  and  beaver.  He  explored  the 
country  and  found  the  best  soil,  the  largest  timber,  the  clearest  water, 
and  the  finest  salt  springs.  This  seemed  to  him  the  best  country  in  the 
world.  No  matter  how  poor  a  man  was  he  could  get  all  the  land  he 
wanted.  To  have  a  house  he  needed  only  to  cut  down  the  trees  and 
build  it  in  a  few  days.  If  he  wanted  moat  he  needed  only  to  go  a  little 
way  into  the  woods  and  shoot  a  deer,  a  bear,  or  a  wild  turkey.  If  he 
wanted  bread  he  needed  only  to  plant  a  small  field  of  corn  or  wheat,  the 
women  and  children  would  grind  it  by  hand  and  they  had  enough. 
Clot])ing  for  boys  and  men  was  easily  made  out  of  the  skins  of  animals. 
The  pelts  of  fur  bearing  animals  were  easily  carried  on  pack  horses  to  the 
east  where  they  were  traded  for  clothing  for  the  women  and  for  guns 
ami  ammunition.  Sugar  was  obtained  from  maple  trees,  honey  from 
wild  bees,  and  salt  from  the  spring.  No  wonder  that  Daniel  Boone 
thought  this  was  a  free  man's  paradise. 


8 

Among  the  friends  of  Daniel  Boone  who  heard  his  account  of  the 
wonderland  of  Kentucky  was  Abraham  Lincoln  in  Virginia.  He  was 
called  a  rich  man  and  because  he  was  well  educated  he  was  called  a 
"gentleman."  Mr.  Lincoln  sold  his  land  in  Virginia,  moved  his  family 
to  Kentucky  and  bought  nearly  a  thousand  acres  of  land.  He  had  three 
sons,  Mordecai,  Josiah  and  Thomas.  The  first  was  a  young  man,  the 
second  was  twelve  or  fifteen,  and  Thomas  was  six.  The  father  and  the 
boys  were  working  in  a  field  near  the  woods  when  a  shot  was  fired  from 
the  bushes  and  the  father  fell  dead  to  the  ground.  Mordecai  ran  to  the 
house,  Josiah  ran  to  call  the  neighbors,  and  little  Thomas,  not  knowing 
what  to  do,  stayed  by  the  dead  body  of  his  father.  Having  reached  the 
house  Mordecai  seized  the  loaded  gun.  Looking  through  the  cracks  be- 
cween  the  logs  of  the  house  he  saw  an  Indian  just  ready  to  carry  ofl'  little 
Thomas.  Taking  aim  at  a  white  medal  on  the  Indian's  breast  he  fired 
and  the  Indian  fell  beside  the  body  of  the  dead  father.  Thomas  ran 
safely  to  the  house.  Mordecai  stood  his  ground  and  whenever  an  Indian 
showed  himself  he  fired.     They  soon  had  enough  and  ran  away. 

The  Lincoln  family  was  broken  up.  Mordecai  got  all  the  property 
according  to  the  law  of  the  land  at  that  time.  Thomas  was  left  to  shift 
for  himself.  There  were  no  schools  in  Kentucky  and  Thomas  had  no 
chance  to  learn  to  read  and  never  did  learn.  He  became  a  wandering 
laboring  boy,  worked  wherever  he  got  a  chance  and  lived  with  the  per.ple 
for  whom  he  worked.  He  learnea  the  carpenter's  trade,  did  the  rough 
carpenter  work  which  was  all  that  was  necessary  in  the  houses  of  that 
time,  and  also  made  the  furniture  of  the  houses.  He  was  a  good  man, 
and  honest,  did  not  swear,  fight,  or  drink.  But  he  was  a  poor  manager 
and  had  little  ambition  to  do  anything  more  than  live  in  the  way  he  had 
always  lived. 

Life  in  Kentucky. 

In  1806  he. was  married  to*  Nancy  Hanks,  a  good  looking,  gentle  and 
well  educated  girl.  They  began  life  in  a  very  poor  house  in  Elizabeth- 
town,  Kentucky.  The  country  Avas  no  longer  what  it  was  in  the  days 
of  Daniel  Boone.  It  was  well  settled,  the  rich  people  owned  the  land 
and  had  slaves  to  do  the  work  which  was  needed  to  be  done.  Thomas 
Lincoln  found  very  little  to  do  and  the  family  was  very  poor.  They  re- 
moved to  a  little  farm  of  very  poor  land  on  Nolin  Creek,  three  miles 
from  Hodgensville.  They  were  able  to  pay  very  little  on  the  land.  Their 
dwelling  was  a  log  cabin  without  a  floor  other  than  the  bare  earth.  Here 
on  the  12th  day  of  February,  1809,  a  baby  boy  was  born  and  they  named 
him  x\braham  after  his  gTandfather  who  was  killed  by  Indians  when 
Thomas,  the  father,  was  a  little  boy.  In  this  cabin  they  lived  until  the 
child  was  four  years  old.  They  were  poorer  than  ever  before.  They 
raised  nothing  on  the  farm  and  there  was  no  work  in  the  neighborhood 
for  the  father  to  do. 

Mr.  Lincoln  had  to  give  up  his  land  because  he  could  not  pay  for  it. 
He  contracted  for  another  farm  on  Knob  Creek,  six  miles  from  Hodgens- 
ville.    Here  he  had  better  land.     He  planted  six  acres  and  found  work 


BIKTHPLACK   (.)¥    ABRAHAM   LINCOLN. 

After  being  carried  about  the  country  for  exhibition  purposes,  this  cabin  was  secured  and  is 
now  owned  by  the  Lincoln  Farm  Association.  When  the  farm  becomes  a  National  Faik  this 
cabin  will  be  prized  by  the  American  people  above  all  other  intetesting  objects  there,  because 
here  began  the  life  which  Stanton  said  '"Now  belongs  to  the  Ages.'' 


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10 

to  do  for  the  neighbors.  Abraham  and  his  sister,  Sarah,  two  years  older 
than  he,  went  to  school  a  little,  but  they  had  to  walk  four  miles.  The 
boy  learned  to  read  and  spell.  They  carried  their  dinner  to  school.  It 
was  only  a  piece  of  corn  bread.  At  home  they  had  milk  with  the  corn 
bread.  He  really  lived  out  of  doors,  only  slept  in  the  cabin.  Much  of 
the  time  he  was  alone.  We  may  think  this  was  a  hard  life,  yet  it  was 
good  for  Abe.  He  had  time  to  think.  It  helped  him  to  look  closely  at 
everything  out  of  doors  and  to  think  about  it.  He  grew  up  strong  and 
hardy. 

Life  in  Indiana. 

Thomas  Lincoln  was  always  ready  to  remove  to  a  better  country.  He 
heard  of  Indiana,  the  new  state  across  the  Ohio.  From  what  he  heard 
of  it,  it  must  be  just  like  Kentucky  in  the  time  of  his  boyhood.  He  built 
a  boat,  loaded  it  with  his  tools  and  other  things  and  floated  down  Knob 
creek  into  the  Eolling  fork,  into  Salt  river,  and  into  the  Ohio.  The 
family  remained  in  Kentucky  until  he  returned.  Sixteen  miles  from 
the  river  he  found  a  piece  of  land  that  suited  him.  It  was  indeed  a  good 
country;  the  finest  timber  of  every  kind.  The  ground  was  strewn  with 
nuts  upon  which  hogs  could  feed  and  get  fat.  The  forest  floor  was 
covered  with  blue  grass,  the  best  feed  for  horses  and  cattle.  The  woods 
were  full  of  game — deer,  bear  and  wild  turkey.  He  returned  to  Kentucky 
for  his  family  without  building  a  house  although  he  had  his  carpenter 
tools  with  him. 

They  loaded  the  few  things  which  they  had  on  borrowed  horses  and 
started  for  their  new  home.  It  was  great  fun  for  the  children  camping 
out  at  night  and  sleeping  under  the  stars.  There  was  much  to  see  and 
to  learn  that  was  new  to  them.  But  it  must  have  been  hard  on  the 
mother  who  was  not  well  or  very  strong.  Arriving  at  the  place  selected 
by  the  father  they  found  themselves  in  the  thick  woods.  No  house  to 
go  into,  and  no  neighbors  nearer  than  several  miles. 

They  soon  erected  what  was  known  as  a  "half-faced  camp."  Two 
posts  forked  at  the  top  abo:t  eight  feet  high  were  placed  firmly  in  the 
ground  and  about  ten  feet  apart.  From  one  to  the  other  of  tliese  a 
ridge  pole  was  placed.  Poles  about  eighteen  feet  long  were  placed  on 
this  side  by  side,  one  end  resting  upon  the  ground.  These  were  covered 
with  broad  pieces  of  bark  and  answered  for  a  roof.  Poles  were  now 
placed  side  by  side  to  close  up  the  two  ends,  and  the  front,  facing  the 
south,  was  left  open.  This  formed  a  mere  shed,  but  when  a  great  log 
fire  was  kept  burning  in  front  it  was  quite  warm.  In  rainv  weather 
bear  skins  Were  hung  up  in  front  to  keep  out  the  storm.  The  beds  were 
lieaps  of  leaves  in  the  back  part  of  the  camp.  The  covering  was  the 
skins  of  animals  and  whatever  could  be  used.  Thomas  Lincoln  meant 
this  for  a  shelter  for  a  short  time  only,  until  he  could  b'lild  a  cabin.  The 
summer  wore  awav  and  winter  came  and  the  cabin  was  not  built. 


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LIFE  IN  INDIANA. 

Ida  M.  Tarbell. 

On  arriving  at  the  new  farm  an  ax  was  put  into  the  boy's  hands,  and 
he  was  set  to  work  to  aid  in  clearing  a  field  for  corn,  and  to  help  build 
the  "half-faced  camp"  Avhich  for  a  year  was  the  home  of  the  Lincolns. 
There  were  few  more  primitive  homes  in  the  wilderness  of  Indiana  in  1816 
than  this  of  yoimg  Lincoln,  and  there  were  fev^'  families,  even  in  that  day, 
who  were  forced  to  practice  more  make-shifts  to  get  a  living.  The  cabin 
which  took  the  place  of  the  "half-faced  camp"  had  but  one  room  with  a  loft 
above.  For  a  long  time  there  was  no  window,  door,  or  floor:  not  even  the 
traditional  deer-skin  hung  before  the  exit:  there  was  no  oiled  paper  over 
the  opening  for  light;  there  was  no  puncheon  covering  on  the  ground. 

The  furniture  was  of  their  own  manufacture.  The  table  and  chairs  were 
of  the  rudest  sort — rough  slabs  of  wood  in  which  holes  were  bored  and  legs 
fitted  in.  Their  bedstead,  or  rather  bed  frame,  was  made  of  poles  held  up 
by  two  outer  posts,  and  the  ends  made  firm  by  inserting  the  poles  in  auger 
holes  that  had  been  bored  in  a  log  which  was  a  part  of  the  wall  of  the  cabin; 
skins  were  its  chief  covering.  Little  Abraham's  bed  was  even  more  prim- 
itive. He  slept  on  a  heap  of  dry  leaves  in  the  corner  of  the  loft,  to  which 
he  mounted  by  means  of  pegs  driven  into  the  wall. 

Their  food,  if  coarse,  was  usually  abundant;  the  chief  difficulty  in  sup- 
plying the  larder  was  to  secure  any  variety.  Of  game  there  was  plenty — 
deer,  bear,  pheasants,  wild  turkeys,  ducks,  birds  of  all  kinds.  There  were 
fish  in  the  streams,  and  wild  fruits  of  many  kinds  in  the  woods  in  the  sum- 
mer, and  these  were  dried  for  winter  use;  but  the  difficulty  of  raising  and 
milling  corn  and  wheat  was  very  great.  Indeed,  in  many  places  in  the  west 
the  first  flour  cake  was  an  historical  event.  Corn-dodger  was  the  every-day 
bread  of  the  Lincoln  household,  the  wheat  cake  being  a  dainty  reserved  for 
Sunday  mornings. 

Potatoes  were  the  only  vegetable  raised  in  any  quantity,  and  there  were 
times  in  the  Lincoln  family  when  they  were  the  only  food  on  the  table;  a 
fact  proved  to  posterity  by  the  oft-quoted  remark  of  Abraham  to  his  father 
after  the  latter  had  asked  a  blessing  over  a  dish  of  roasted  potatoes — "that 
they  were  mighty  poor  blessings."  Not  only  were  they  all  the  Lincolns  had 
for  dinner  sometimes;  one  of  their  neighbors  tells  of  calling  there  when  raw 
potatoes,  pared  and  washed,  were  passed  around  instead  of  apples  or  other 
fruit.  They  even  served  as  a  kind  of  pioneer  chauffrette — being  baked  and 
given  to  the  children  to  carry  in  their  hands  as  they  started  to  -school 
or  on  distant  errands  in  the  winter  time. 

The  food  v.as  prepared  in  the  rudest  way,  for  the  supply  of  both  groceries 
and  cooking  utensils  was  limited.  The  former  were  frequently  wanting 
entirely,  and  as  for  the  latter,  the  most  important  item  was  the  Dutch  oven. 
An  indispensable  article  in  the  prim.itive  kitchen  outfit  v>'as  the  "gritter."' 
It  was  made  by  flattening  out  an  old  piece  of  tin,  punching  it  full  of  holes, 
and  nailing  it  on  a  board.  Old  tin  was  used  for  many  other  contrivances 
besides  the  "gritter,"  and  every  scrap  was  carefully  saved.  Most  of  the 
dishes  were  of  pewter;  the  spoons,  iron;  the  knives  and  forks,  horn-handled. 
— From  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  published  by  the  McClnre  Co..  Neic  York. 

Death  of  Abraham's  Mother. 

We  ni'ay  think  Abraham  had  a  hard  time  thus  far  in  his  short  life. 
But  he  did  not  think  so.  All  healthy  boys  like  to  live  out  of  doors.  He 
enjoyed  his  meals  of  coarse  food.  His  mother  was  kind  to  him  and  now 
that  Dennis  Hanks,  his  cousin,  had  come  from  Kentucky  and  lived  in 
the  half-faced  camp,  he  had  a  lut  of  fun  when  he  did  not  have  to  work. 

But  hard  times  came  knocking  at  the  door.  A  great  sorrow  was  just 
ahead.  A  terrible  sickness  broke  out.  They  called  it  the  "milk  sick" 
for  it  seemed  to  come  from  the  caws.     The  cattle  died  suddenly  in  oTeat 


Monument  placed  at  the  Grave  of  Nancy 
Bend,  Indiana  in  the  year  1879. 


Hankri  Linculn  bv  P.  K.  Studebakcr  ot  Soutli 


This  Monument  was  erected  in  1902  by  Col.  J.  S.  Culver  of  Springfield.  111., 
taken  from  the  Monument  of  Abraham  Lincoln  when  it  was  undergoing  repairs. 


from  Stone 


13 


GRAVE  OF  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN'S  MOTHER  IN  1860. 

Reproduced   by    permission    from    "How    Abraham   Lincoln    Became   President" 
by  J.  McCan  Davis. 


14 

rumbers.  Dennis  Hanks'  parents  botli  died.  Dennis,  thus  left  alone,_ 
was  taken  into  the  Lincoln  home.  Abraham's  mother  was  taken  sick. 
I'liere  was  not  a  doctor  within  fifty  miles.  Abraham  and  Sarah  did  all 
they  could  for  her.  One  night  as  the  dark  was  beginning  to  creep  into 
the  cabin,  she  called  Abraha'm  to  her,  p  it  her  arm  about  him,  and  said 
that  she  was  going  away  and  would  never  come  back.  She  wanted  him 
to  be  good  to  Sarah  and  to  his  father  and  be  a  good  boy  always.  Then 
she  closed  her  eyes  and  went  to  sleep  never  again  to  awaken  in  this 
world. 

Now  Abraham's  heart  was  sad,  indeed.  The  mother  who  understood 
him  was  gone.  He  knew  that  his  father  did  not  understand  him  and 
often  was  very  unkind,  thought  he  was  lazy  because  he  liked  to  sit  and 
hear  people  talk.     What  would  they  do   ? 

The  next  morning  the  father  and  Abraham  and  Dennis  went  into 
the  forest  and  cut  down  a  tree  and,  by  hand,  sawed  out  boards.  These 
Thomas  Lincoln  made  into  a  coffin.  Into  this  the  sorrowing  children 
and  father  put  the  body  of  Nancy  Hanks  Lincoln  and  laid  it  away  in 
a  little  cleared  spot  in  the  forest.  No  one  was  there  to  say  a  prayer  or 
speak  a  kind  word  to  the  sorrowing  children.  They  went  back  to  the 
cabin  in  the  solitary  woods.  Though  the  sun  shone  in  the  daytime  and 
the  birds  sang  in  the  bushes,  darkness  came  and  the  owls  hooted  and 
cried  at  night.  Sarah  was  eleven,  and  Abraham  was  nine.  It  was 
said  of  Jesus  "he  was  a  man  of  sorrows  and  acquainted  with  grief." 
Abraham  Lincoln  was  surely  a  child  of  sorrows  and  acquainted  with 
grief.  Though  he  always  loved  fun  and  could  be  as  happy  as  anybody, 
the  time  never  came  when  the  cloud  of  sadness  was  lifted  from  his-  life. 
When  he  was  a  man  many  people  said  that  his. was  the  saddest  face  which 
they  had  ever  seen. 

The  mother  gone,  they  took  up  life  as  best  they  could.  Sarah  tried 
to  take  the  mother's  place.  Abe  and  his  father  and  Dennis  helped  her 
all  they  could.  Vvinter  came  on,  but  the  cabin  was  made  no  more  com- 
fortable. What  a  lonely  and  bitter  life  it  must  have  been.  All  the 
suffering  and  work  could  not  make  Abraham  forget  his  mother.  He 
grieved  most  because  she  was  laid  away  without  a  hymn  being  sung  or 
a  prayer  offered  up.  He  managed  some  way  to  send  word  to  a  traveling 
minister,  whom  he  had  known  in  Kentucky.  Some  say  he  wrote  a  letter. 
It  is  more  likely  that  he  sent  word  by  some  one  who  went  back  to  their 
former  home.  He  asked  the  minister  if  he  would  come  to  Indiana  and 
preach  a  funeral  sermon  over  the  grave  of  his  mother.  The  good  man 
came  as  soon  as  he  could.  The  neighbors  came  from  a  great  distance. 
The  preacher  spoke  of  the  good  character  of  the  mother,  who  had  gone, 
and  said  the  kind  words  which  Abraham  wished  so  much  to  hear.  He 
now  felt  that  proper  respect  had  been  shown  to  his  mother  and  he  was 
more  content. 

The  New  Mother  and  Better  Times. 

In  the  late  fall  of  1819  one  year  after  the  death  of  Abe's  mother  the 
father  said  he  was  going  to  Kent  icky.  The  crop  of  corn,  wheat,  and 
potatoes  had  been  raised,  meat  was  provided   from  the  pigs  that  ran 


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in  the  woods,  and  the  cows  gave  them  milk.  The  three  children  were 
left  alone  in  the  cabin  without  windows,  door,  or  floor. 

But  a  great  surprise  awaited  them.  Aboui  Christmas  time,  three 
loaded  wagons  came  creaking  through  the  woods.  The  three,  ragged, 
dirty,  shivering  children  stood  out  by  the  cabin  door  to  see  what  this 
could  mean.  The  man  by  the  driver  Avas  surely  their  father.  There  was 
a  driver,  a  woman  and  three  children  besides.  The  wagons  were  loaded 
with  furniture.  They  stopped  at  their  door.  The  woman  was  tall, 
clean,  well  dressed,  and  had  a  kind  face  and  voice.  She  said,  "I  am  your 
father's  wife  and  will  try  to  be  a  good  mother  to  you."  If  Abe  ever 
heard  fairy  stories,  he  must  have  said  to  himself  this  is  just  lilvC  a  fairy 
tale.  His  own  mother  had  loved  him  verjV  much,  but  she  was  weak  and 
sick  and  discouraged  most  ol  the  time.  Abe  often  felt  sorry  for  her. 
The  hard,  cheerless  living  since  they  had  laid  her  away  under  the  trees 
had  not  cheered  him.  Now  that  he  had  no  one  to  teach  him  to  read 
he  saw  no  hope  ahead.  But  here  came  a  lovely,  kind  and  strong  woman, 
who  said,  "I  will  be  your  mother."  How  joy  and  hope  must  have  en- 
tered into  his  heart.  We  know  he  promised  himself  that  he  would  be 
good  to  her.  For  when  this  woman  was  old  and  Abe  had  been  President 
of  the  United  States,  when  he  had  given  his  life  for  the  good  of  others, 
she  said,  "Abe  was  the  best  boy  I  ever  saw  or  expect  to  see.  He  never 
gave  me  a  cross  word  or  look  in  his  life." 

Mrs.  Lincoln  had  three  children  of  her  own  and  they  came  to  live 
with  them.  The  furniture  was  put  into  the  house.  Abe  and  his  sister 
were  cleaned  up  and  dressed  in  clean,  comfortable  clothing.  A  good 
supper  was  prepared.  A  great  change  had  come  into  the  life  of  the 
lonely  children.  Windows,  a  door,  and  a  floor  were  soon  put  in  the 
house,  the  cracks  between  the  logs  were  plastered  shut,  the  old,  dirty 
corn  husk  mattress  in  the  corner  was  taken  out  and  a  nice  feather  bed 
on  a  bedstead  took  its  place.  Beds  were  made  up  in  the  garret  of  the 
cabin  for  the  boys.  The  good  woman  grew  better  every  day.  She  made 
the  father  fix  up  things.  She  was  kind  to  Abe  and  he  loved  her  very 
much.  She  loved  him  too,  for  she  saw  that  he  was  a  good  boy  and  anx- 
ious to  learn.  He  was  always  talking  to  his  new  mother,  asking  her 
all  sorts  of  questions,  and  telling  her  how  much  he  wished  to  know 
everything.  She  allowed  no  one  to  disturb  him  when  he  was  reading 
and  she  made  the  father  let  him  go  to  school. 

Abraham  and  his  step  brothers  and  sisters  got  along  nicely  together. 
There  were  eight  in  all  living  in  the  little  log  cabin.  The  mother  so 
managed  it  that  all  had  a  good  time.  Abe  worked  for  the  neighbors  a 
great  deal.  The  money  which  he  earned  was  given  to  his  father.  He 
borrowed  all  the  books  that  he  could  hear  of,  was  never  without  a  book. 
When  others  rested  from  work  he  was  reading.  He  read  at  night  when 
the  rest  were  asleep.  By  the  time  he  was  twenty-one,  he  knew  more 
of  what  is  in  books  than  any  one  in  the  neighborhood.  He  remembered 
all  he  read  and  all  the  stories  he  heard  and  could  tell  them  in  a  way 
that  pleased  and  instructed  every  one. 


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Life  ix  Illinois. 

In  1830.  Thoma?  Lincoln  decdded  to  remove  to  Illinois.  We  will  let 
Dennis  Hanks  tell  abont  the  niovins:  as  lie  told  it  to  Eleanor  Atkinson : 
sitting  in  his  chair  at  Charleston,  Illinois,  at  the  age  of  ninety-two : 

Well!  Lemme  see.  Yes:  I  reckon  it  was  John  Hanks  'at  got  restless  fust 
an'  lit  out  fur  Illinois,  an'  wrote  fur  us  all  to  come,  an'  he'd  git  land  fur  us. 
Tom  was  always  ready  to  move.  He  never  had  his  land  in  Indiany  all  paid 
fur,  nohow.  So  he  sold  off  his  corn  an'  hogs  an'  piled  everything  into  ox- 
wagons  an'  we  all  went — Lirskhorns  and  Hankses  an'  Johnstons,  all  hangin' 
together.  I  reckon  we  was  like  one  o'  them  tribes  o'  Israel  that  you  kain't 
break  up,  nohow.  An'  Tom  was  always  lookin'  fur  the  land  o'  Canaan. 
Thar  was  five  families  of  us,  then,  an'  Abe.  It  tuk  us  two  weeks  to  git  thar, 
raftin'  over  the  Wabash,  cuttin'  our  way  through  the  woods,  fordin'  rivers, 
pryin'  wagons  an'  steers  out  o'  sloughs  with  fence  rails,  an'  makin'  camp. 
Abe  cracked  a  joke  every  time  he  cracked  a  whip,  an'  he  found  a  way  out 
o'  every  tight  place  while  the  rest  of  us  was  standin'  round  scratchin'  our 
fool  heads.  I  re-^kon  Abe  and  Aunt  Sairy  run  that  movin',  an'  good  thing 
thev  did.  or  it'd  'a'  ben  run  into  a  swamp  an'  sucked  under. 

"It  was  a  purty  kentry  up  on  the  Sangamon,  an'  we  all  tuk  up  with  the  idy 
that  they  covild  run  steamboats  up  to  our  cornfields  an'  load:  but  we  had 
fever'n  ager  turrible,  so  in  a  year  or  two,  we  moved  back  here  to  Coles 
county,  and  we've  ben  here  ever  sence.  Abe  helped  put  up  a  cabin  for  Tom 
on  the  Sangamon,  clear  fifteen  acres  fur  corn,  an'  split  walnut  rails  to  fence 
it  in.  Abe  was  some'ers  'round  twenty-one. — Frovi  "Boyhood  of  Abraham 
Lincoln"  McClure  Co.,  New  York. 

As  soon  as  Abraham  had  settled  his  parents  in  their  new  home,  he 
began  working  for  the  neighbors,  splitting  rails  and  doing  snch  other 
work  as  came  to  hand.  He  helped  float  a  flat  boat  down  the  Sangamon, 
Illinois  and  Mississippi  to  iSTew  Orleans.  He  then  became  a  clerk  in  a 
store  which  his  employer  Offntt  started  at  Xew  Salem  on  the  Sangamon 
near  the  present  town  of  Petersburg.  Offutt  knew  Lincoln's  great 
strength  and  was  constantly  bragging  about  how  easily  Abe  could  whip 
any  fellow  in  the  town.    We  shall  see  how  this  sot  Abe  into  trouble. 

LIFE  AT  NEW  SALEM. 
INicholay  and  Hay.] 

Public  opinion  at  New  Salem  was  formed  by  a  crowd  of  ruffianly  young 
fellows  v.-ho  were  called  the  "Clary's  Grove  Boys."  Once  or  twice  a  v>'eek 
thev  (Tpscended  rpon  the  village  and  passed  the  day  in  drinking,  fighting, 
and  brutal  horse-play.  If  a  stranger  appeared  in  the  place,  he  was  likely  to 
suffer  a  rude  initiation  into  the  social  life  of  New  Salem  at  the  hands  oi 
these  jovial  savages.  Sometimes  he  was  nailed  un  in  a  hogshead  and  rolled 
down  hill;  sometimes  he  was  insulted  into  a  fight  and  then  mauled  black 
and  blue:  for,  despite  their  pretensions  to  chivalry  they  had  no  scruples 
about  fair  play  or  any  such  superstitions  of  civilization.  At  first  they  did 
not  seem  inclined  to  m-olest  young  Lincoln.  His  appearance  did  not  invite 
insolence:  his  renutation  for  strength  and  activity  was  a  greater  protection 
to  him  than  his  inoffensive  good-nature.  But  the  loud  admiration  of 
Offutt  gave  them  umbrage.  It  led  to  dispute,  contradictions,  and  finally  to 
a  form^al  banter  to  a  wrestling-match.  Lincoln  was  greatly  averse  to  all  this 
"wooling  and  pulling,"  as  he  called  it.  But  Offutt's  indiscretion  had  made 
it  necessary  for  him  to  show  his  mettle.  Jack  Armstrong,  the  leading  bully 
of  the  gang,  was  selected  to  throw  him,  and  expected  an  easy  victo^J^ 
But  he  soon  found  himself  in  different  hands  from  any  he  had  heretofore 
engaged  with.     Seeing  he  could  not  manage  the  tall   stranger,   his   friends 


swarmed  in  and,  kicking  and  trippinp:.  nearly  succeeded  in  getting  Lincoln 
down.  At  this,  as  has  been  said  of  another  hero,  "the  spirit  of  Odin  entered 
into  him."  and  putting  forth  his  whole  strength,  he  held  the  pride  of  Clary's 
Grove  in  his  arms  like  a  child,  and  alnio.=;t  choked  the  exuberant  life  out  of 
him.  For  a  moment  a  .general  fight  seemed  inevitable;  but  Lincoln,  standing 
undismayed  with  his  back  to  the  wall,  looked  so  formidable  in  his  defiance  that 
an  honest  admiration  took  the  place  of  momentary  fury,  and  his  initiation  was 
over.  As  to  Armstrong,  he  was  Lincoln's  friend  and  sworn  brother  as  soon 
as  he  recovered  the  use  of  his  larynx,  and  the  bond  thus  strangely  created 
lasted  through  life,  Lincoln  had  no  further  occasion  to  fight  his  ov/n  battles 
while  Armstrong  was  there  to  act  as  his  champion.  The  two  friends, 
although  so  widely  different,  were  helpful  to  each  other  afterwards  in  many 
ways,  and  Lincoln  made  ample  amends  for  the  liberty  his  hands  had  taken 
with  ,Tack's  throat,  by  saving,  in  a  memorable  trial,  his  son's  neck  from  the 
halter. 

This  incident,  trivial  and  vulgar  as  it  may  seem,  was  of  great  importance 
in  Lincoln's  life.  His  behavior  in  this  ignoble  scuflle  did  the  work  of  years 
for  him,  in  giving  him  the  position  he  required  in  the  community  where  his 
lot  v,-as  cast.  He  became  from  that  moment,  in  a  certain  sense,  a  personage, 
with  a  name  and  standing  of  his  own.  The  verdict  of  Clary's  Grove  was 
unanimous  that  he  was  "the  cleverest  fellow  that  had  ever  broke  into  the 
settlement."  He  did  not  have  to  be  constantly  scuffling  to  guard  self-respect, 
and  at  the  same  time  he  gained  the  good  will  of  the  better  sort  by  his  evi- 
dent peaceableness  and  integrity. 

He  made  on  the  whole  a  satisfactory  clerk  for  Mr.  Offutt,  though  his 
downright  honesty  must  have  seemed  occasionally  as  eccentric  in  that  po- 
sition as  afterwards  it  did  to  his  associates  at  the  bar.  Dr.  Holland  has  pre- 
served one  or  two  incidents  of  this  kind,  which  have  thei,r  value.  Once, 
after  he  had  sold  a  woman  a  little  bill  of  goods  and  received  the  money,  he 
found  on  looking  over  the  account  again  that  she  had  given  him  six  and  a 
quarter  cents  too  much.  The  money  burned  in  his  hands  until  he  locked  the 
shop  and  started  on  a  walk  of  several  miles  in  the  night  to  make  restitu- 
tion before  he  slept.  On  another  occasion,  after  vreighing  and  delivering  a 
pound  of  tea,  he  found  a  small  weight  on  the  scales.  He  immediately 
weighed  out  the  quantity  of  tea  of  which  he  had  innocently  defrauded  his 
customer  and  went  in  search  of  her,  his  sensitive  conscience  not  permitting 
any  delay.  To  show  that  the  young  merchant  was  not  too  good  for  this  world, 
the  same  writer  gives  an  incident  of  his  shop-keeping  experience  of  a  dif- 
ferent character.  A  rural  bully  having  made  himself  especially  offensive 
one  day,  w^hen  women  v/ere  present,  by  loud  profanity,  Lincoln  requested  him 
to  be  silent.  This  was  of  course  a  cause  of  war,  and  the  young  clerk  was 
forced  to  follow  the  incensed  ruffian  into  the  street,  where  the  combat  was 
of  short  duration.  Lincoln  threw  him  at  once  to  the  ground,  and  gathering 
a  ha^idful  of  the  dog  fennel  v»'ith  which  the  roadside  was  plentifully  bor- 
dered, he  rublied  the  ruffian's  face  and  eyes  with  it  until  he  howled  for  mercy. 
He  did  not  howl  in  vain,  for  the  placable  giant,  when  his  discipline  was 
finished,  brought  water  to  bathe  the  culprit's  smarting  face  and  doubtless 
improved   the  occasion   with   quaint   admonition. 

A  few  passages  at  arms  of  this  sort  gave  Abraham  a  redoubtable  reputa- 
tion in  the  neighborhood.  But  the  principal  use  he  made  of  his  strength  and 
his  prestige  was  in  the  capacity  of  peacemaker,  an  office  which  soon  de- 
volved upon  him  by  general  consent.  Whenever  old  feuds  blossomed  into 
fights  by  Offutt's  door,  or  the  chivalry  of  Clary's  Grove  attempted  in  its  en- 
ergetic way  to  take  the  conceit  out  of  some  stranger,  or  a  canine  duel  spread 
contagion  of  battle  among  the  masters  of  the  beasts,  Lincoln  usually  appeared 
upon  the  s^ene.  and  with  a  judicious  mixture  of  force  and  reason  and  invin- 
cible good-nature  restored  peace. — From  "Abraham  Lincoln,  a  History."  pub- 
lished by  the  Century  Co.,  Xew  York. 


20 

Lincoln  Eeads  Law. 

For  a  short  time  Abraham  Lincoln  o-svTied  a  store  in  New  Salem  but 
he  did  not  prosper.  Dennis  Hanks  saj^s  he  was  too  honest.  People 
always  got  the  better  of  him  in  a  trade.  He  liked  to  talk  to  people 
rather  than  to  sell  them  goods.  He  had  begun  to  study  law  and  read 
books  when  he  ought  to  have  been  attending  to  business.  He  failed  and 
was  greatly  in  debt.  It  took  a  long  time  to  pay  his  debts  but  they  were 
all  paid. 

He  entered  the  Black  Hawk  war  as  captain  of  the  company  raised  in 
his  county.  He  learned  surveying  and  worked  at  it  for  several  years. 
He  became  a  candidate  for  the  Legislature  and  was  defeated.  The 
next  time  he  was  elected.  The  speech  which  follows  made  during  his 
first  campaign  for  the  Legislature  shows  how  honorable  was  Jiis  ambi- 
tion and  hoAV  honestly  and  plainly  he  could  talk  to  the  people. 

Lincoln's  Ambition. 

[From  an  address  to  the  people  of  Sangamon  county,  issued  March  9,  1832.] 
''Every  man  is  said  to  have  his  peculiar  ambition.  Whether  it  be  true 
or  not,  I  can  say,  for  one,  that  I  have  no  other  so  great  as  that  of  being 
truly  esteemed  of  my  fellow-men,  by  rendering  myself  worthy  of  their 
esteem.  How  far  I  shall  succeed  in  gratifying  this  ambition  is  yet  to  be 
developed.  I  am  young,  and  unknown  to  many  of  you.  I  was  born,  and 
have  ever  remained,  in  the  most  humble  walks  of  life.  I  have  no  wealthy 
or  popular  relations  or  friends  to  recommend  me.  My  case  is  thrown  ex- 
clusively upon  the  independent  voters  of  the  country ;  and,  if  elected,  they 
will  have  conferred  a  favor  upon  me  for  which  I  shall  be  unremitting  in 
my  labors  to  compensate.  But  if  the  good  people  in  their  wisdom  shall 
see  fit  to  keep  me  in  the  background,  I  have  been  too  familiar  with  dis- 
appointments to  be  very  much  chagrined." 

Begins  the  Practice  of  Law. 

When  he  came  home  from  the  Legislature  he  went  at  the  study  of  law 
in  earnest.  A  great  lawyer  in  Springfield,  Mr.  J.  T.  Stuart,  loaned 
him  books,  Lincoln  often  walking  from  New  Salem  to  Springfield,  a 
distance  of  twenty  miles,  to  borrow  them.  When  he  was  ready  to  begin 
to  practice  law  he  went  to  Springfield  and  formed  a  partnership  with  his 
friend,  J.  T.  Stuart.  He  wanted  to  rent  a  room,  but  to  do  so  he  had 
to  buy  some  furniture.  Mr.  Joshua  Speed,  the  store  keeper,  told  him 
it  would  cost  about  seventeen  dollars.  Lincoln  said,  "It  probably  is 
cheap  enough,  but  cheap  as  it  is,  I  have  not  the  money  to  pay.  But  if 
you  will  credit  me  until  Christmas  and  my  experiment  here  as  a  lawyer 
is  a  success  I  will  pay  you  then.  If  I  fail  in  that  I  will  probably  never 
pay  you."  Mr.  Speed  says :  "His  tone  was  very  sad  and  when  I  looked 
into  his  face,  I  thought  then  as  I  think  now,  I  never  saw  a  face  so 
gloomy  and  sad."  Mr.  Speed  said  to  him  that  he  had  a  large  room  and 
a  wide  bed  and  if  he  would  share  it  he  would  be  welcome.  Lincoln 
asked  where  his  room  was,  and  when  told  that  it  was  up  above  the  store. 


31 

he  picked  up  his  saddle  bags  and  liis  little  bundle  of  clothing,  and 
withoit  saying  another  word  went  up  stairs,  set  down  his  little  bun- 
•dles,  came  down,  his  face  all  smiles,  and  said,  "Well,  Speed,  I'm  moved." 
Here,  boys  and  girls,  ends  the  stor}-  of  Abraham  Lincoln's  3'outh  and 
young  manhood.  He  was  now  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  but  had  just 
begun  his  life  work.  The  story  of  his  life  is  indeed  what  he  himself  said 
it  was:     "The  short  and  simple  annals  of  the  poor!'^ 

We  may  do  no  better  than  to  close  this  part  of  the  story  of  his  life 
with  the  words  of  Elbridge  S.  Brooks: 

"You  see  now,  do  you  not,  v/hat  pluck  and  perseverance  will  do?  You 
know  how  Abraham  Lincoln  started  in  the  world;  how  he  came  from  the 
poorest  and  most  unpromising  beginnings;  how  poverty  and  ignorance  and 
unfavorable  surroundings  and  awkwardness  and  lack  of  good  looks  could  not 
keep  him  down,  because  he  was  determined  to  raise  himself  and  become 
somebody. 

In  all  the  history  of  America  there  has  been  no  man  who  started  lower  and 
climbed  higher  than  Abraham  Lincoln,  the  backwoods  boy.  He  never 
'slipped  back.'  He  always  kept  going  ahead.  He  broadened  his  mind 
enlarged  his  outlook,  and  led  his  companions  rather  than  let  them  lead  him. 
He  was  jolly  company,  good-natured,  kind-hearted,  fond  of  jokes  and  stories 
and  a  good  time  generally,  but  he  was  the  champion  of  the  weak,  the 
friend  of  the  friendless,  as  true  a  knight  and  as  full  of  chivalry  as  any  of 
the   heroes    in  armor  of  whom    you    read    in    'Ivanhoe'    or    'The    Talisman.' 

He  never  cheated,  never  lied,  never  took  an  unfair  advantage  of  anyone; 
but  he  was  ambitious,  strong-willed,  a  bold  fighter  and  a  tough  adversary 
— a  fellow  who  would  'never  say  die;'  and  who,  therefore,  succeeded. 

Take  well  to  heart,  boys  and  girls  of  America,  the  story  of  the  plucky 
boy  who,  upon  what,  seventy  years  ago,  was  the  outskirts  of  civilization, 
was  all  unconsciously  training  himself  to  be  the  American."- — From  "'The 
True   Story  of  Abraham   Lincoln,"   Lathrop   Publishing   Co.,   Boston. 


More  of  his  life  and  labors  may  not  be  given  here.     You  will  get  a 

good  idea  of  his  noble  character  by  a  study  of  his  own  words  gathered 

from  his  letters  and  speeches  and  from  what  great  men  say  of  him. 

When  you  have  the  opportunity  you  will  read  a  complete  life  of  this 

.irreat  and  good  man. 


22 


II. 
WORDS  OF  LINCOLN. 


One  of  the  best  ways  to  get  acquainted  with  Abraham  Lincoln  is  to  read 
his  own  words.  There  are  two  reasons  for  this.  In  the  first  place,  while  he 
was  called  upon  in  the  course  of  his  life  to  deal  with  some  of  the  most 
difficult  questions  that  have  ever  been  discussed  in  America,  what  he  said 
and  wrote  was  so  simple,  so  direct,  and  so  clear  that  almost  anybody  could 
understand  him.  In  the  second  place,  his  letters,  speeches,  and  State 
papers  bear  everywhere  the  stamp  of  that  quality  which,  when  he  was 
twenty-four  years  old,  had  won  for  him  the  homely  frontier  title  of  "Hon- 
est Abe."     It  is,  therefore,  the  real  Lincoln  that  is  revealed  in  them. 

When  the  people  began  to  talk  about  Lincoln  as  a  possible  candidate  for 
the  office  of  President  of  the  United  States,  there  was  a  natural  desire  to  learn 
who  he  was,  who  his  ancestors  were,  and  what  he  had  done  in  his  early  j^ears. 
To  one  of  his  friends,  J.  W.  Fell,  who  asked  him  for  this  kind  of  information, 
he  wrote  the  story  of  his  life.  This  is  the  fullest  statement  that  he  ever  made. 
— Henry  Johnson,  Columbia  University,  New  York. 


Lincoln's  Own  Story. 

I  was  born  February  12,  1809,  in  Hardin  county,  Kentucky.  My 
parents  were  both  born  jn  Virginia,  of  undistinguished  families — sec- 
ond families,  perhaps  I  should  say.  ]\Iy  mother,  who  died  in  my  tenth 
year,  was  of  a  family  of  the  name  of  Hanks,  some  of  whom  now  reside 
in  Adams,  and  others  in  Macon  co-inty,  Illinois.  My  paternal  grand- 
father, Abraham  Lincoln,  emigrated  from  Eockingham  county,  Virginia, 
to  Kentucky  about  1781  or  1782,  where  a  year  or  two  later  he  was  killed 
by  the  Indians,  not  in  a  battle,  but  by  stealth,  when  he  was  laboring  to 
open  a  farm  in  the  forest.  His  ancestors,  who  were  Quakers,  went  to 
Virginia  from  Berks  county,  Pennsylvania.  An  effort  to  identify  them 
with  the  New  England  family  of  the  same  name  ended  in  nothing 
more  definite  than  a  similarity  of  Christian  names  in  both  families, 
such  as  Enocb,  Levi,  Mordecai,  Solomon,  Abraham,  and  the  like. 

My  father,  at  the  death  of  his  father,  was  but  six  years  of  age,  and 
he  grew  up  literally  without  education.  He  removecl  from  Kentucky 
to  what  is  now  Spencer  county,  Indiana.,  in  ray  eighth  year.  We  reached 
our  new  home  about  the  time  the  State  came  into  the  Union.  It  was 
a  wild  region,  with  many  bears  and  other  wild  animals  still  in  the  woods. 
There  I  grew  up.  There  were  some  schools,  so  called,  but  no  qualifica- 
tion was  ever  required  of  a  teacher  beyond  "readin',  writin',  and  ciph- 


•23 

crin'  "  to  the  rule  of  three.  If  a  ^^trajigh'i'  supposed  to  understand 
J^atiu  ha])pened  to  sojourn  in  tlie  neigliborhood,  he  was  looked  upon  as 
a  wizard.  There  was  ab&olutely  nothing  to  excite  ambition  for  educa- 
tion. Of  course,  when  I  came  of  age  1  did  not  know  much.  Still,  some- 
how, I  could  read,  write,  and  cipher  to  the  rule  of  three,  but  that  was  all. 
1  have  not  been  to  school  since.  The  little  advance  I  now  have  uj)on 
this  store  of  education  1  have  picked  'p  from  time  to  time  under  the 
pressure  of  necessity. 

I  was  raised  to  farm  work,  which  T  continued  till  I  was  twenty-two. 
At  twenty-one  I  came  to  Illinois,  Macon  county.  Then  I  got  to  'New 
Salem,  at  that  time  in  Sangamon,  now  in  Menard  cpunty,  where  I  re- 
mained a  year  as  a  sort  of  clerk  in  a  store. 

Tlun  eanie  the  Black  Hawk  war;  and  I  was  elected  a  captain  of 
volunteei"s,  a  success  which  gave  me  more  pleasure  than  any  I  have  had 
since.  I  went  the  campaign,  was  elated,  ran  for  the  Legislature  the 
same  year  (1832),  and  was  beaten — the  only  time  I  ever  have  been 
beaten  by  the  people.  The  next  and  three  succeeding  biennial  elections 
I  was  elected  to  the  Legislature.  I  was  not  a  candidate  afterward.  Dur- 
ing this  legislative  period  I  had  studied  law,  and  removed  to  Springfield 
to  practice  it.  In  1846  I  was  once  elected  to  the  lower  House  of  Con- 
gress. Was  not  a  candidate  for  re-election.  From  1849  to  1854,  both 
inclusive,  practiced  law  more  assiduo.isly  than  ever  before.  Always  a 
Whig  in  politics;  and  generally  on  the  Whig  electoral  tickets,  making 
active  canvasses.  I  was  losing  interest  in  politics  when  the  repeal  of 
the  Missouri  Compromise  aroused  me  again.  What  I  have  done  since 
then  is  pretty  well  known. 

If  any  personal  description  of  me  is  thought  desirable  it  may  be 
said  I  am,  in  height,  six  feet  four  inches,  nearly;  lean  in  flesh,  weigh- 
ing on  an  average  one  hundred  and  eighty  pounds;  dark  complexion, 
with  coarse  black  hair  and  gray  eyes.  Xo  other  marks  or  brands  recol- 
lected.    Springfield,  December  20,  1859. 


Farewell  Speech. 

[On  February  11,  18'jl.  Mr.  Lincoln  started  for  Washinston  to  be  inaugur- 
ated President,  on  March  4th.  .Just  before  the  train  started  he  spoke  to  his 
neighbors  the  following  genuine,  heartfelt  words.  It  would  seem  that  on 
this  occasion  the  people  would  have  shouted  in  exultation  over  the 
victory  and  honor,  but  most  of  them  were  in  tears.  When  he  again  returned 
to  Springfield  he  had  finished  the  greatest  work  done  by  an  American  since 
Washington,  but  he  was  being  conveyed  to  his  tomb.  Then  not  only  his 
neighbors,  but  the  whole  country  was  in  tears.] 

"!My  Friends:  Xo  one  not  in  my  position  can  realize  the  .>adness  I 
feel  at  this  parting.  To  this  people  I  owe  all  that  I  am.  Here  I  have 
lived  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century.  Here  my  children  were  born, 
and  here  one  of  them  lies  buried.  I  know  not  how  soon  I  shall  see  you 
again.  I  go  to  assume  a  task  far  more  difficult  than  that  whicii  has  de- 
volvcd  upon  any  other  man  since  the  days  of  Washington.  He  never 
would  have  s  icceeded  except  for  the  aid  of  Divine  Providence,  upon 
which  he  at  all  times  relied.     I  feel  that  I  can  not  succeed  without  the 


24 

same  Divine  blessing  which  sustained  him;  and  on  the  same  Ahnighty 
Being  I  phice  my  reliance  for  support.  And  I  hope  you,  my  friends, 
will  all  pray  that  I  may  receive  that  Divine  assistance  without  which  I 
can  not  succeed,  but  with  which  success  is  certain.  Again  I  bid  you  an 
affectionate  farewell." 


From  a  Letter  to  William  H.  Herndon,  Washington,.  July  10, 1848. 

[Mr.  Herndon  was  a  young  man  living  at  Springfield.  He  wrote  to  Lincoln, 
who  was  then  a  member  of  Congress  at  Washington,  complaining  that 
the  older  men  held  all  the  places  in  the  public  service,  and  that  a  young  man 
had  no  chance  to  rise.  The  older  men  were  ungenerous  and  held  young  men 
back  because  they  were  young  men.  Mr.  Lincoln  gave  him  the  following 
advice,  which  is  just  as  good  for  young  men  today  as  it  was  then.] 

The  way  for  a  young  man  to  rise  is  to  improve  himself  every  way  he 
can,  never  suspecting  that  anybody  wishes  to  hinder  him.  Allow  me  to 
assure  you  that  suspicion  and  jealousy  never  did  help  a  man  in  any 
situation.  There  may  sometimes  be  ungenerous  attempts  to  keep  a 
young  man  down ;  and  they  will  succeed,  too,  if  he  allows  his  mind  to  be 
diverted  from  its  true  channel  to  brood  over  the  attempted  injur}'.  Cast 
about,  and  see  if  this  feeling  has  not  injured  every  person  you  have 
ever  known  to  fall  into  it. 


"A  House  Divided  Against  Itself  Cannot  Stand.'' 

[On  Lincoln's  Nomination  to  the  United  State's  Senate.] 
[Before  making  the  following  statement  in  a  speech  Mr.  Lincoln  showed 
it  to  some  of  his  friends.  They  told  him  it  was  a  great  mistake.  It  would 
surely  defeat  him  for  the  Senate.  He  replied  that  he  considered  it  the 
truth  and  he  would  rather  say  it  and  be  defeated  than  not  to  say  it  and  be 
elected.  His  judgment  was  correct,  as  was  that  of  his  friends.  It  defeated 
him,  yet  later  it  became  his  tower  of  strength  and  was  a  strong  influence 
in  his  election  to  the  Presidency.] 

If  we  could  first  know  where  we  are,  and  whither  we  are  tending,  we 
could  better  judge  what  to  do,  and  how  to  do  it.  We  are  now  far  into 
the  fifth  year,  since  a  policy  was  initiated  with  the  avowed  object  and 
confident  promise  of  putting  an  end  to  slavery  agitation.  Under  the 
operation  of  that  policy,  tliat  agitation  has  not  only  not  ceased  but  has 
constantly  augmented.  In  my  opinion  it  will  not  cease  until  a  crisis 
shall  have  been  reached  and  passed.  "A  house  divided  against  itself 
cannot  stand."  I  believe  this  government  cannot  endure  permanently, 
half  slave  and  half  free.  I  do  not  expect  the  Union  to  be  dissolved, — 
I  do  not  expect  the  house  to  fall;  but  I  do  expect  it  will  cease  to  be 
divided.  It  will  become  all  one  thing,  or  all  the  other.  Either  the  op- 
ponents of  slavery  will  arrest  the  further  spread  of  it,  and  place  it 
where  the  public  mind  shall  rest  in  the  belief  that  it  is  in  the  course  of 
ultimate  extinction ;  or  its  advocates  will  push  it  forward  till  it  shall  be- 
come alike  lawful  in  all  the  States,  old  as  well  as  new,  North  as  well  as 
South. — Springfield,  Illinois,  June  17,  1858. 


2b 

On  Mob  Kule. 

[From  an  address  before  the  Younp;  Men's  Lyceum  of  Springfield,   111.,  Jan- 
uary 27,  1837.] 

livrc,  Uicu,  is  one  point  at  which  danger  may  he  expected.  The  ques- 
tion recurs,  how  shall  we  fortify  against  it?  The  answer  is  simple. 
Let  every  American,  every  iover  of  liberty,  every  well-wisher  to  his 
posterity,  swear  by  the  blood  of  the  Eevolution  never  to  violate  in  the 
least  particular  the  laws  of  the  country,  and  never  to  tolerate  their 
violation  by  others.  As  the  patriots  of  seVenty-six  did  to  the  support 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  so  to  the  support  of  the  Constitu- 
tion and  the  Laws  let  every  American  pledge  his  life,  his  property,  and 
liis  sacred  honour;  let  every  man  remember  that  to  violate  the  law  is  to 
trample  on  the  blood  of  his  father,  and  to  tear  the  charter  of  his  own  and 
his  children's  liberty.  Let  reverence  for  the  laws  be  breathed  by  every 
American  mother  to  the  lisping  babe  that  prattles  on  her  lap.  Let 
it  be  taught  in  schools,  in  seminaries,  and  in  colleges.  Let  it  be  writ- 
ten in  primers,  spelling-books,  and  in  almanacs.  Let  it  be  preached 
from  the  pulpit,  proclaimed  in  legislative  halls,  and  enforced  in  courts 
of  justice.  And,  in  short,  let  it  become  the  political  religion  of  the  na- 
tion. 


Stand  by  Duty. 


If  slavery  is  right,  all  words,  acts,  laws,  and  constitutions  against  it 
are  themselves  wrong,  and  should  be  silenced  and  swept  away.  If  it 
is  right,  we  cannot  justly  object  to  its  nationality,  its  universality;  if 
it  is  wrong,  they  cannot  justly  insist  upon  its  extension,  its  enlargement. 
All  they  ask,  we  could  readily  grant,  if  we  tho-ight  slavery  right.  *  * 
]f  our  sense  of  duty  forbids  this,  then  let  us  stand  by  our  duty  fearlessly 
and  effectively.  *  *  *  Let  us  have  faith  that  right  makes  might; 
and,  in  that  faith,  let  us  to  the  end  dare  to  do  our  duty  as  we  understand 
it— February,  1860. 


The  Majority  Rules. 

The  only  dispute  on  both  sides  is,  "What  are  their  rights?''  If  the 
majority  should  not  rule,  who  should  be  the  judge?  Where  is  such 
judge  to  be  found?  We  should  all  be  bound  by  the  majority  of  the 
American  people;  if  not,  then  the  minority  must  control.  Would  that 
be  right?  Would  it  be  just  or  generous?  Assuredly  not.  I  reiterate 
that  the  majority  should  rule.  If  I  adopt  a  wrong  policy,  the  oppor- 
tunity for  condemnation  will  occir  in  four  years'  time.  Then  I  can  be 
turned  out,  and  a  better  man.  with  better  views,  put  in  my  place. — 
Februarv,  18G1. 


26 

Support  of  the  People. 

[Probably  no  man  ever  elected  to  the  presidency  was  thought  by  so  many 
people  to  be  unfit  for  the  place  as  was  Lincoln.  He  was  so  unknown  and  when 
he  became  known  his  lack  of  schooling,  his  plainness,  his  awkwardness, 
and  lack  of  culture  confirmed  them  in  this  unfavorable  belief.  Note  the  so- 
ber,   modest  strength  of  his  statement:] 

"I  do  not  say,  that,  in  the  recent  election,  the  people  did  the  wisest 
thing  that  could  have  been  done;  indeed,  I  do  not  think  they  did:  but 
T  do  say,  that  in  accepting  the  great  trust  committed  to  me,  I  must  rely 
upon  you,  upon  the  people  o'i  the  whole  country,  for  their  support ;  and, 
with  their  sustaining  aid,  even  I,  humble  as  I  am,  cannot  fail  to  carry 
the  ship  of  State  safely  through  the  storm." — February,  1861. 


First  Inaugur.il  Address. 

(March  4,  1861.) 

[By  the  time  Lincoln  was  to  be  inaugurated  President  the  Southern  states 
had  seceded  and  had  set  up  a  government  of  their  own,  as  they  claimed  they 
had  a  right  to  do.  The  people  of  the  Northern  states  claimed  that  a  state 
had  no  right  to  withdrav>'  from  the  Union.  Mr.  Buchanan,  President  before 
Lincoln,  had  said  that  the  government  had  no  right  to  make  war  on  the 
seceding  states.  What  would  Lincoln  say?] 

In  your  hands,  my  dissatisfied  fellow-countn^men,  and  not  in  mine, 
is  the  momentous  issue  of  civil  war.  The  government  will  not  assail 
you.  You  can  have  no  conflict  without  being  yourselves  the  aggressors. 
You  have  no  oath  registered  in  heaven  to  destroy  the  government,  while 
T  shall  have  the  most  solemn  one  to  "preserve,  protect,  and  defend  it." 

I  am  loath  to  close.  We  are  not  enemies,  but  friends.  We  must  not 
be  enemies.  Though  passion  may  have  strained,  it  must  not  break  our 
bonds  of  affection.  The  mystic  chords  of  memory,  stretching  from 
every  battle-field  and  patriot  grave  to  every  living  heart  and  hearthstone 
all  over  this  broad  land,  will  yet  swell  the  chorus  of  the  Union  when 
again  touched,  as  surely  they  will  be,  by  the  better  angels  of  our  nature. 


Justice  of  teie  People. 

Why  should  there  not  be  a  patient  confidence  in  the  ultimate  justice 
of  the  people?  Is  there  any  better  or  equal  hope  in  the  world?  In  our 
present  differences,  is  either  party  without  faith  of  being  in  the  right? 
If  the  Almighty  Euler  of  nations,  with  His  eternal  truth  and  justice, 
be  on  your  side  of  the  ISTorth,  or  on  yours  of  the  South,  that  truth  and 
justice*  will  surely  prevail  by  the  judgment  of  this  great  tribunal  of  the 
American  people. — March,  1861. 


Toiling  Up. 

Xo  men  living  are  more  worthy  to  be  f  rusted  than  those  who  toil  up 
from  poverty;  none  less  inclined  to  take  or  touch  aught  which  they  have 
not  honestly  earned. — December,  1861. 


27 
Letter  to  Hor-\ce  Greeley. 

[Hoiare  Greeley,  editor  of  tlie  New  York  TriJ)U)n\  and  spokesman  for  a 
strong:  party  in  the  Nortli,  which  was  impatient  at  Lincoln's  delay  in  freeing 
the  slaves,  was  very  severe  in  his  criticisms  of  the  President.  This  is  Lin- 
coln's leply.] 

I  woukl  save  tlie  Union.  1  would  .>;ave  it  the  shortest  way  under  the 
Constitution.  Tlic  sooner  the  national  authority  can  be  restored,  the 
nearer  the  Union  will  be  "the  Union  as  it  was."  If  there  be  those  who 
would  not  save  the  Union  'inless  they  could  at  the  same  time  save  slavery, 
1  do  not  agree  with  them.  If  there  1)e  those  who  would  not  Siive  the 
I'nion  unless  they  could  at  the  same  time  destroy  slaver}',  I  do  not  agree 
with  them.  My  paramount  object  in  this  struggle  is  to  save  the  Union, 
and  is  not  either  to  save  or  destroy  slavery.  If  I  could  save  the  Union 
without  freeing  any  slave,  I  would  do  it;  and  if  I  could  save  it  by 
freeing  all  the  slaves,  I  would  do  it;  and  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing 
some  and  leaving  others  alone,  I  would  also  do  that.  What  1  do  about 
slavery  and  the  colored  race,  I  do  because  I  believe  it  helps  to  save 
the  Union;  and  what  I  forbear,  I  forbear  because  I  do  not  believe  it 
would  help  to  save  the  Union.  I  shall  do  less  whenever  I  shall  believe 
what  I  am  doing  hurts  the  cause,  and  I  shall  do  more  wdienever  I  shall 
believe  doing  more  w^ill  help  the  caise.  I  shall  try  to  correct  errors 
when  shown  to  be  errors,  and  I  shall  adopt  new  views  so  fast  as  they 
shall  appear  to  be  true  views. — August  22,  1862. 


Dependence  Upon  God. 

[Reply  to  an  address  by  Mrs.  Gurney,  September,  1862.] 
We  are  indeed  going  through  a  great  trial — a  fiery  trial.  In  the  very 
responsible  position  hi  which  I  happen  to  be  placed,  being  a  humble  in- 
strument in  the  hands  of  our  Heavenly  Father,  as  I  am,  and  as  wc  all 
are,  to  work  out  His  great  purposes,  I  liave  desired  that  all  my  works 
and  acts  may  be  according  to  His  will,  and  that  it  might  be  so,  I  have 
sought  His  aid ;  but  if,  after  endeavoring  to  do  the  l)est  in  the  light  w^hich 
He  affords  me,  I  find  my  efforts  fail,  I  must  believe  that,  for  some  pur- 
pose unknown  to  me.  He  wills  it  otherwise. 

If  I  had  had  my  way,  this  war  would  never  have  been  commenced. 
If  I  had  been  allowed  my  way,  this  war  would  have  been  ended  before 
this ;  but  we  find  it  still  continues,  and  we  must  believe  that  He  permits 
it  for  some  wise  purpose  of  His  own,  mysterious  and  unknown  to  us; 
and  though  with  our  limited  understanding  we  may  not  be  able  to  com- 
prehend it,  yet  we  cannot  but  believe  that  He  who  made  the  world  still 
governs  it. 


Letter  to  General  Grant. 
Uuly  13,  1863.] 
My  Dear  General — I  do  not  remember  that  you  and  I  ever  met  per- 
sonally. I  write  this  now  as  a  grateful  acknowledgment  for  the  almost 
inestimable  service  you  have  done  the  countr}-.  I  wish  to  say  a  word 
further.  Wlien  you  first  reached  the  vicinity  of  Yicksburg,  I  thought 
}ou  should  do  what  you  finally  did — march  the  troops  across  the  neck, 


28 

run  the  batteries  wiLli  the  transports,  and  thus  go  below;  and  I  never 
had  any  faith,  except  a  general  hope  that  you  knew  better  than  I,  that 
the  Yazoo  Pass  expedition  and  the  like  could  succeed.  AVhen  you  got 
below  and  took  Port  Gibson,  Grand  Gulf,  and  vicinity,  I  thought  you 
■sho.ild  go  down  the  river  and  join  General  Banks,  and  when  you  turned 
northward,  east  of  the  Big  Black,  I  feared  it  was  a  mistake.  I  now  wish 
to  make  the  personal  acknowledgment  that  you  were  right  and  I  was 


wrong. 


Yours  very  truly, 

A.  Lincoln. 


The  Women, 


I  am  not  accustomed  to  the  use' of  language  of  eulogy;  I  have  never 
studied  the  art  of  paying  compliments  to  women ;  but  I  must  say,  that, 
if  all  tliat  has  been  said  by  orators  and  poets  since  the  creation  of  the 
world  in  praise  of  women  were  applied  to  the  women  of  America,  it 
would  not  do  them  justice  for  their 'conduct  during  this  war.  I  will 
■close  by  saying,  God  bless  the  women  of  America! — March,  1864. 


Letteh  of  Condolence  to  Mes.  Bixby  of  Boston,  Massachusetts. 

[N.ovember  21,  1864.] 

[Lincoln's  enemies  accused  him  repeatedly  of  being  indifferent  to  the 
great  suflering  and  sorrow  caused  by  the  war.  This  letter  shows  how  little 
they  knev.   him.] 

Dear  Madam — I  have  been  shown  in  the  files  of  the  War  Department 
•a  statement  of  the  Adjutant-General  of  Massachusetts  that  you  are  the 
motlier  of  five  sons  who  have  died  gloriously  on  the  field  of  battle.  I 
feel  how  weak  and  fruitless  must  be  any  words  of  mine  which  should  at- 
tempt to  beguile  you  from  the  grief  of  a  loss  so  overwhelming.  But 
I  cannot  refrain  from  tendering  to  you  the  consolation  that  may  be 
found  in  the  thanks  of  the  Eepublic  they  died  to  save.  I  pray  that  our 
Heavenly  Father  may  assuage  the  anguish  of  your  bereavement,  and 
leave  you  only  the  cherished  memory  of  the  loved  and  lost,  and  the 
■solemn  pride  that  must  be  yours  to  have  laid  so  costly  a  sacrifice  upon 
the  altar  of  freedom. 

Yours  very  sincerely  and  respectfully, 

Abraham  Lincoln. 


Second  Inaugural  Address. 

[Mr.  Lincoln  v>'as  elected  President  a  second  time.  The  opposition  to  him 
was  not  strong,  but  what  there  was,  was  exceedingly  bitter.  He  was  accused 
of  the  worst  crimes  and  called  the  worst  names.  But  these  things  did  not 
disturb  him.  He  knew  the  war  must  soon  close.  He  thought  only  of  what 
was  best,  closing  his  address  in  these  memorable  words:  "With  malice 
tovi'ard  none;  with  charity  for  all."] 

Fondly  do  we  hope — fervently  do  we  pray — that  this  mighty  scourge 
of  war  may  speedily  pass  away.  Yet,  if  God  wills  that  it  continue  imtil 
:all  the  wealth  piled  by  the  bondman's  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  of 


29 

iiiiroquited  toil  shall  be  sunk,  niul  until  every  drop  of  blood  drawn  with 
tlie  hish  shall  be  paid  by  another  drawn  with  tlie  sword,  as  was  sjiid  three 
thousand  years  afjo,  so  still  it  must  be  said,  "The  judgments  of  the 
Lord  are  true  and  righteous  altogether."' 

With  malice  toward  none;  with  charity  for  all;  with  firmness  in  the 
right,  as  God  gives  'is  to  see  the  right,  let  us  strive  on  to  finish  the  work 
we  are  in;  to  bind  up  the  nation's  wounds;  to  care  for  him  who  shall 
have  borne  the  battle,  and  for  his  widow,  and  his  orphan — to  do  all 
which  may  achieve  and  cherish  a  just  and  lastiner  peace  among  ourselves, 
and  with  all  nations. 


Ttfe  Gettysburg  Address. 

[Before  studying  this  speech  it  would  be  well  to  have  the  older  children 
road  in  thfir  history  the  account  of  the  invasion  of  the  Northern  States 
and  the  battle  of  Gettysburg. 

On  The  19th  of  November,  1S63,  a  great  throng  had  assembled  on  the 
battlefield  to  dedicate  a  part  of  it  for  a  national  cemetery.  Edward  Everett, 
a  great  orator,  made  the  principal  address,  holding  the  audience  spellbound 
for  Iv/o  hours.  At  the  close  the  President  was  invited  "to  make  a  few 
appropriate  remarks." 

Mr.  Clark  E.  Carr,  of  Galesburg,  Illinois,  who  was  present,  has  this  to 
say  in 

"Fifty  Years  After,  A  IJeverie." 

On  a  bright  November  afternoon  of  long  ago,  when  the  autumn  leaves 
were  tinged  with  thousand  hues  of  beauty,  upon  an  eminence  in  the 
midst  of  a  great  plain  bounded  by  lofty  mountains,  I  saw  a  vast  con- 
course of  men  and  women.  I  saAv  among  them  illustrious  warriors, 
gifted  poets,  and  profound  statesmen.  I  saw  ambassadors  of  mighty 
empires,  governors  of  great  commonwealths,  ministers  of  cabinets,  men 
of  high  position  and  power.  I  saw  ^ibove  their  heads,  upon  every  hand, 
a  starry  banner,  dropping  under  the  weight  of  sombre  drapory.  I  saw 
men  and  women  standing  among  new-made  graves,  overwhelmed  with 
grief  which  they  vainly  endeavored  to  conceal.  I  knew  that  I  was  in 
the  midst  of  a  people  bowing  under  great  affliction,  of  a  land  stricken 
with  sorrow.  I  knew  that  the  tide  of  destruction  and  death  had  not 
censed  to  ebb  and  flow,  liut  that  at  that  moment  the  fate  of  my  country 
was  trembling  in  the  balance,  her  only  hope  in  the  fortitude  and  valor 
of  her  sons,  who  were  baring  their  breasts  to  storms  of  shot  and  sliell 
only  a  few  miles  away.    , 

I  saw  standing  in  the  midst  of  that  mighty  assembly  a  man  of  majes- 
tic yet  benignant  mien,  of  features  worn  and  haggard,  but  beaming 
with  purity,  with  patriotism,  and  Avith  hope.  Every  eye  was  directed  to- 
wards him,  and,  as  men  looked  into  his  calm,  sad,  earnest  face,  they 
recognized  the  great  President,  the  foremost  man  of  the  world,  not  only 
in  position  and  power  ])ut  in  all  th(>  noblest  attributes  of  humanity. 
When  he  essayed  to  speak,  such  solemn  silence  reigned  as  when,  within 
consecrated  walls,  men  and  women  feel  themselves  in  the  presence  of 
Deity.      Each    sentence,   slowly   and    earnestly   pronounced,   as    its   full 


30 

import  was  apprehended^  sank  into  every  patriotic  lieart,  gave  a  strange 
lustre  to  every  face,  and  nerved  every  arm.  In  those  utterances,  the  ab- 
stract, tlie  condensation,  the  summing  up  of  American  patriotism,  were 
contained  the  hopes,  tlie  as}iirations,  the  stern  resolves,  the  consecra- 
tion upon  the  altar  of  humanity,  of  a  great  people. 

From  the  hour  of  that  solemn  dedication  the  final  triumph  of  tlie 
loyal  hosts  was  assured.  As  the  Christian  day  by  day  voices  the  sacred 
prayer  given  him  by  his  Savior,  so  the  American  Patriot  will  continue 
to  cherish  those  sublime  sentiments  and  inspired  words.  While  the 
Eepublic  lives  he  will  continue  to  repeat  them,  and  while,  realizing  all 
their  solemn  simificance,  he  continues  to  repeat  them,  the  Republic  ivill 
live. — From  Lincoln  at  Gettyslmrg,  iy  Clarh  E.  Carr,  McClure  Publish- 
ing Co.,  Chicago. 

The  Address. 

Four  score  and  seven  years  ago  our  fathers  brought  forth  on  this 
continent,  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  liberty,  and  dedicated  to  the 
proposition  that  all  men  are  created  equal. 

Now  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  civil  war,  testing  whether  that  nation 
or  any  nation  so  conceived  and  so  dedicated,  can  long  endure.  We  are 
met  on  a  great  battle-field  of  that  war.  We  have  come  to  dedicate  a 
portion  of  that  field,  as  a  final  resting  place  for  those  who  here  gave 
their  lives  that  that  nation  might  live.  It  is  altogether  fitting  and 
proper  that  we  should  do  this. 

But,  in  a  larger  sense,  we  cannot  dedicate — we  cannot  consecrate — 
we  cannot  hallow — this  ground.  The  brave  men,  living  and  dead,  wlio 
struggled  here,  have  consecrated  it,  far  above  our  poor  power  to  add  or 
detract.  The  world  will  little  note,  nor  long  remember  what  we  say 
here,  but  it  can  never  forget  what  they  did  here.  ,  It  is  for  us  the  living, 
rather,  to  be  dedicated .  here  to^tl:^  unfinished  work  which  they  who 
fought  here  have  thus  far  so  nobly  advanced.  It  is  rather  for  us  to  be 
here  dedicated  to  the  great  task  remaining  before  us — that  from  these 
honored  dead  we  take  increased  devotion  to  that  cause  for  which  they 
gave  the  last  full  measure  of  devotion — that  we  here  highly  resolve  that 
these  dead  shall  not  have  died  in  vain — that  this  nation  under  God,  shall 
have  a  new  birth  of  freedom — and  that  government  of  the  people,  by 
the  people,  for  the  people,  shall  not  perish  from  the  earth. 


THE    LINCOLN    MONUMENT. 


31 


III. 

TRIBUTES    TO    THE    MEMORY    OF     ABRAHAM 

LINCOLN. 


By  William  Cullen  Bryant. 

O,  slow  to  smite  and  swift  to  spare, 

Gentle   and  merciful   and  just! 
Who  in  the  fear  of  God,  didst  bear 

The  sword  of  power— a  nation's  trust. 

In  sorrow  by  the  bier  we  stand, 
Amid  the  awe  that  hushes  all. 
And  speak  the  anguish  of  a  land 
That  shook  with  horror  at  thy  fall. 

Thy  task  is  done — the  bond  are  free; 

We  bear  thee  to  an  honored  grave. 
Whose  noblest  monument  shall  be 

The  broken  fetters  of  the  slave. 

Pure  was  thy  life;  its  bloody  close 

Hath    placed    thee   with    the   sons    of   light, 

Among  the  noble  host  of  those 

Who  perished  in  the  cause  of  right. 


By  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes. 

O  Thou  of  soul  and  sense  and  breath, 

The  ever-present  Giver, 
Unto   Thy   mighty   angel,   death. 

All  flesh  thou  dost  deliver; 
What  most  we  cherish,  we  resign. 
For  life  and  death  alike  are  Thine, 

Who  reignest  Lord  forever! 

Our  hearts  lie  buried  in  the  dust 
With  him,  so  true  and  tender, 

The  patriot's  stay,  the  people's  trust, 
The  shield  of  the  offender; 

Yet  every  murmuring  voice  is  still. 

As,  bowing  to  Thy  sovereign  will. 
Our  best  loved  we  surrender. 


32 


Dear  Lord,   with   pitying  eye  behold 

This  martyr  generation, 
Which  Thou,  through  trials  manifold, 

Art  shov^'ing  Thy  salvation! 
O  let  the  blood  by  murder  spilt 
Wash  out  Thy  stricken  children's  guilt. 

And  sanctify  our  nation! 

Be  Thou  Thy  orphaned  Israel's  friend, 

Forsake  Thy  people  never, 
In  One  our  broken  Many  blend. 

That  none  again  may  sever! 
Hear  us,  O  Father,  while  we  raise 
With  trembling  lips  our  songs  of  praise, 

And  bless  Thy  name  forever! 


From  Englishmen. 

[The  government  of  England  sympathized  with  the  Southern  cause.  The  Lon- 
don Punch  was  particularly  severe  in  its  criticisms  and  cartoons  on  Mr.  Lincoln. 
It  pictured  him  as  most  uncouth  and  ludicrous.  But  that  at  his  death  the  great- 
ness and  goodness  of  the  man  were  fully  appreciated  is  shown  in  the  three  poems 
which   follow.] 


[From  the  London  Punch.'\ 

You  lay  a  wreath  on  murdered  Lincoln's  bier! 

You,  who  with  mocking  pencil  wont  to  trace. 
Broad   for  the  self-complacent  British   sneer, 

His  length  of  shambling  limb,  his  furrowed  face," 

His  gaunt,  gnarled  hands,  his  unkempt  bristling  hair, 
His  garb  uncouth,  his  bearing  ill  at  ease. 

His  lack  of  all  we  prize  as  debonair. 

Of  power  or  will  to  shine,  of  art  to  please! 

You,  whose  smart  pen  backed   up  the  pencil's  laugh, 
Judging  each  step,  as  though  the  way  were  plain 

Reckless,  so  it  could  point  its  paragraph 
Of  chief's   perplexity,   or   people's   pain! 

Beside  this  corpse,  that  bears  for  winding-sheet 
The  stars  and  stripes  he  lived  to  rear  anew. 

Between  the  mourners  at  his  head  and  feet. 
Say,  scurril-jester,  is  there  room  for  ifou? 

Yes,  he  had  lived  to  shame  me  from  my  sneer — 
To  lame  my  pencil,  and  to  confute  my  pen — 

To  make  me  own  this  hind  of  princes  peer. 
This  rail-splitter,  a  true-born  king  of  men. 

My  shallow  judgment  I  had  learnt  to  rue. 
Noting  how  to  occasion's  height  he  rose; 

How   his   quaint  wit  made  home-truth    seem   more   true; 
How,  iron-like,  his  temper  grew  by  blows; 

How  humble,  yet  hov%-  hopeful,  he  could  be: 
How  in  good  fortune  and  in  ill  the  same; 

Nor  bitter  in  success,  nor  boastful  he. 
Thirsty  for  gold,  nor  feverish  for  fame. 


> 


33 


He  went  about  his  work — such  work  as  few 
Ever  had  laid  on  head,  and  heart,  and  hand — 

As  one  who  knows  where  there's  a  task  to  do; 

Man's  honest  will  must  Heaven's  good  grace  command; 

Who  trusts  the  strength  will  with  the  burden  grow, 
That  God  makes  instruments   to  v>ork  his  will, 

If  but  that  will  we  ran  arrive  to  know. 

Nor  tamper  with  the  weights  of  good  and  ill. 

So  he  went  forth  to  battle,  on  the  side 
That  he  felt  clear  was  liberty's  and  Right's, 

As  in  his  peasant  boyhood  he  had  plied 

His  warfare  with  rude  nature's  thwarting  mights;  — 

The  uncleared  forest,  the  unbroken  soil. 
The  iron  bark  that  turns  the  lumberer's  axe. 

The  rapid,  that  o'erbears  the  boatman's  toil. 
The  prairie,  hiding  the  mazed  wanderer's  tracks. 

The  ambushed  Indian,  and  the  prowling  bear, — 

Such  were  the  needs  that  helped  his  youth  to  train; 
Rough  culture — but  such  trees  large  fruit  may  bear, 
•   If  but  their  stocks  be  of  right  girth  and  grain. 

So  he  grew  up,  a  destined  work  to  do, 
And   lived   to   do   it:   four   long-suffering  years' 

Ill-fate,  ill-feeling,  ill-report,  lived  through, 

And  then  he  heard  the  hisses  change  to  cheers. 

The  taunts  to  tribute,  the  abuse  to  praise, 

And  took  both  with  the  same  unwavering  mood; 

Till,   as   he    came  on   light,    from    darkling   days, 
And  seemed  to  touch  the  goal  from  where  he  stood, 

A  felon  hand,  between  the  goal  and  him. 

Reached  from  behind  his  back,  a  trigger  prest — 

And   those  perplexed  and   patient  eyes  were  dim, 
Those  gaunt  long-laboring  limbs  were  laid  to  rest! 

The  words  of  mercy  were  upon  his  lips, 
Forgiveness   in   his   heart   and   on   his   pen, 

When   this   vile  murderer  brought   swift  eclipse 

To  thoughts   of  peace   on   earth,  good   v>'ill   to   men. 

The  old  world  and  the  new,  from  sea  to  sea. 

Utter  one  voice  of  sympathy  and  shame! 
Sore  heart,  so  stopped  when  it  at  last  beat  high; 

Sad  life,  cut  short  just  as  its  triumph  came. 


[From  MacMillan's  Magazine,  England.] 

Lincoln!  when  men  would  name  a  man 
Just,  unperturbed,  magnanimous. 

Tried  in  the  lov/est  seat  of  all. 
Tried  in  the  chief  seat  of  the  house — 

Lincoln!    When  men  would  name  a  man 
Who  wrought  the  great  work  of  his  age, 

Who  fought  and  fought  the  noblest  fight. 
And  marshalled  it  from  stage  to  stage, 


34 


Victorious,  out  of  dusk  and  dark, 
And  into  dawn  and  on  till  day 

Most  humble  when  the  paeans  rang, 
Least  rigid  when  the  enemy  lay 

Prostrated  for  his  feet  to  tread — 

This  name  of  Lincoln  will  they  name, 

A  name  revered,  a  name  of  scorn. 
Of  scorn  to  sundry,  not  to  fame. 

Lincoln,  the  man  who  freed  the  slave; 

Lincoln  whom  never  self  enticed; 
Slain  Lincoln,  worthy  found  to  die 

A  soldier  of  his  captain  Christ. 


By  John  Nichol. 

An  end  at  last!    The  echoes  of  the  war — 

The  weary  war  beyond  the  Western  waves —    ■ 

Die   in   the   distance.     Freedom's    rising   star 
Beacons  above  a  hundred  thousand  -graves; 

The  graves  of  heroes  who  have  won  the  fight. 
Who  in  the  storming  of  the  stubborn  town 

Have  rung  the  marriage  peal  of  might  and  right. 
And  scaled  the  cliffs  and  cast  the  dragon  down. 

Paeans  of  armies  thrill  across  the  sea, 

Till   Europe   answers — "Let  the   struggle    cease. 

The  bloody  page  is  turned;    the  next  may  be 
For  ways  of  pleasantness  and  paths  of  peace!" 

A  golden  morn — a  daw^n  of  better  things — 
The  olive  branch — clasping  of  hands  again — 

A  noble  lesson  read  to  conquered  kings — 
A  sky  that  tempests  had  not  scoured  in  vain. 

This  from  America  we  hoped  and  him 

Who  ruled  her  "in  the  spirit  of  his  creed." 
Does  the  hope  last  when  all  our  eyes  are  dim, 
■    As  history  records  her  darkest  deed? 

The  pilot  of  his  people  through  the  strife, 

With  his  strong  purpose  turning  scorn  to  praise, 
E'en  at  the  close  of  battle  reft  of  life. 
And  fair  inheritance  of  quiet  days. 

Defeat  and  triumph  found  him  calm  and  just. 

He  showed  how  clemency  should  temper  power. 
And  dying  left  to  future  times  in  trust 

The  memory  of  his  brief  victorious   hour. 

O'ermastered  by  the  irony  of  fate. 
The  last  and  greatest  martyr  of  his  cause; 
Slain  like  Achilles  at  the  Scaean  gate, 

He  saw  the  end  and  fixed  "the  purer  laws." 

May  these  endure  and,  as  his  work,  attest 
The  glory  of  his  honest  heart  and  hand — 

The  simplest,  and  the  bravest,  and  the  best — 
The  Moses  and  the  Cromwell  of  his  land. 


35 


Too  late  the  pioneers  of  modern  spite, 

Awe-stricken   by   the  universal   gloom, 
See  his  name  lustrous  in  Death's  sable  night. 

And  offer  tardy   tribute  at  his  tomb. 

But  we  who  have  been  with  him  all  the  while, 
Who  knew  his  worth,  and  loved  him  long  ago. 

Rejoice  that  in  the  circuit  of  our  isle 
There  is  no  room  at  last  for  Lincoln's  foe. 

— London  Spectator. 


0  Captain  !    My  Captain  ! 

Walt  Whitman. 

O  Captain!   my  Captain!   our  fearful  trip  is  done, 
The  ship  has  weather'd  every  rack,  the  prize  we  sought  is  won, 
The  port  is  near,  the  bells  I  hear,  the  people  all  exulting, 
While  follow  eyes  the  steady  keel,  the  vessel  grim  and  daring; 
But  O  heart!  heart!  heart! 
O  the  bleeding  drops  of  red, 

Where  on  the  deck  my  captain  lies. 
Fallen  cold  and  dead. 

O  Captain!  my  Captain!   rise  up  and  hear  the  bells; 
Rise  up — for  you  the  flag  is  flung — for  you  the  bugle  trills, 
x^'or   you   bouquets  and   ribbon'd    wreaths— for   you    the   shores* 

a-crowding. 
For  you  they  call,  the  swaying  mass,  their  eager  faces  turning; 
Here  Captain!  dear  father! 
This  arm  beneath  your  head! 

It  is  some  dream  that  on  the  deck, 
You've  fallen  cold  and  dead. 

My  Captain  does  not  answer,  his  lips  are  pale  ^nd  still, 
My  father  does  not  feel  my  arm,  he  has  no  pulse  nor  will, 
The  ship  is  anchor'd  safe  and  sound,  its  voyage  closed  and  done. 
From  fearful  trip  the  victor  ship  comes  in  with  object  won; 
Exult  O  shores,  and  ring  0  bells! 
But  I  with  mournful  tread, 

Walk  the  deck  my  captain  lies. 
Fallen  cold  and  dead. 
— Fi-om  "Leaves  of  Grass,"  Sviall,  Menard  &  Co.,  Boston. 


By  Dennis  B.  Dorsey. 

Slowly  we  come  to  learn  thy  worth. 
Oh,  genial  man!  oh,  modest  sage! 

Slowly  we  come  to  see  we've  lost 
The  grandest  spirit  of  the  age. 

So  near  we  felt  the  loving  heart, 

Gentle  and  warm  tow'rd  all  mankind, 

We  ne'er  looked  up  to  see  ourselves 
O'ershadowed  by  the  mighty  mind. 


36 


Now  scarce  we  know  which  we  most  miss, 
The  leader's  mind  or  brother's  heart; 
And  scarce  we  know  which  most  we  prize, 
The  brother's  love  or  leader's  art. 

The  world  with  us  will  prize  them  both; 

To  us  alone  they  were  not  given; 
Like  light  and  air,  to  all  mankind. 

They  were  a  common  gift  of  Heaven. 

Not  we  alone  thy  death   deplored, 
Not  Tx'e  alone  thy  absence  weep; 

The  world  through  all  the  ages  hence 

Thy  name  shall  love,  thy  fame  shall  keep. 


Funeral  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 

Walt  Whitman. 

Over  the  breast  of  the  spring,  the  land,  amid  cities, 

Amid  lanes  and  through  old  woods,  where  lately  the  violets 
peeped  from  the  ground,  spotting  the  grey  debris, 

Amid  the  grass  in  the  fields  each  side  of  the  lanes,  pass- 
ing the  endless  grass. 

Passing  the  yellow-spear'd  wheat,  every  grain  from  its 
shroud  in  the  dark-brown  fields  uprisen. 

Passing  the  apple-tree  blows  of  v^'hite  and  pink  in  the 
orchards. 

Carrying  a  corpse  to  where  it  shall  rest  in  the  grave. 

Night  and  day  journeys  a  coffin. 

Coffin  that  passes  through  lanes  and  streets, 

Through  day  and  night  with  the  great  cloud  darkening  the  land, 

With  the  pomp  of  the  inloop'd  fiags  with  the  cities  draped 

in  black. 
With  the  show  of  the  States  themselves  as  of  crape-veil'd 

women  stanSing, 
With  processions  long  and  winding  and  the  flambeaus  of  the 

night. 
With  the  countless  torches  lit,  with  the  silent  sea  of 

faces  and  the  unbared  heads. 
With  the  waiting  depot,  the  arriving  coffin,  and  the  sombre  faces. 
With  dirges  through  the  night,  with  the  thousand  voices 

rising  strong  and  solemn. 
With  all  the  mournful  voices  of  the  dirges  pour'd  around 

the  coffin, 
The  dim  lit  churches  and  the  shuddering  organs— where 

amid  these  you  journey. 
With  the  tolling,  tolling  bells'  perpetual  clang, 
Here,  coffin  that  slovcly  passes,  .    ' 

I  give  you  my  sprig  of  lilac. 

— From  ''When  Lilacs  Last  in  the  Dooryard  Blossom." 


PUBLIC  VAULT  AT  OAK  RIDGE. 


The  remains  of  President  Lincoln  and  his  son  Willie  who  died  In  Washington, 
were  placed   in   this   vault  May   4,   1865. 


38 
Lincoln  and  Burns. 

[Both  born  of  lowly  parents,  both  reared  amongst  the  common  folk,  both  close 
to  the  great  heart  of  humanity,  both  quick  to  see  the  real  worth  of  a  man  despite 
his  rank  or  decorations,  it  is  little  wonder  that  Burns  should  come  so  close  to  a 
picture  of  Lincoln  in  some  of  his  works,  and  that  Lincoln  should  discover  himself 
in  some  of  those  writings,  particularly  in  the  poem  which  follows:] 

HONEST  POVERTY. 

Is  there,  for  honest  poverty. 

That  hangs  his  head,  and  a'  that? 
The  coward-slave,  we  pass  him  by, 

We  dare  be  poor  for  a'  that! 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that, 

Our  toil's  obcure,  and  a'  that, 
The  rank  is  but  the  guinea-stamp. 
The  man's  the  gowd  for  a'  that. 

What  though  on  hamely  fare  we  dine, 

Wear  hodden  grey,  and  a'  that; 
Gie  fools  their  silks,  and  knaves  their  wine, 

A  man's  a'  man  for  a'  that! 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that! 

The  honest  man,  though  e'er  sae  poor,- 
Is  king  o'  men  for  a'  that. 

Ye  see  yon  birkie,  ca'd  a  lord, 

Wha  struts,  and  stares,  and  a'  that; 

Though  hundreds  worship  at  his  word. 

He's  but  a  coof  for  a'  that. 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that: 

His  riband,  star,  and  a'  that, 
The  man  of  independent  mind, 

He  looks  and  laughs  at  a'  that. 

A  king  can  mak'  a  belted  knight, 

A  marquess,  duke,  and  a'  that; 
But  an  honest  man's  aboon  his  might, — 

Guid  faith,  he  maunna  fa'  that! 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that, 

Their  dignities,  and  a'  that. 
The  pith  o'  sense  and  pride  o'  worth 

Are  higher  ranks  than  a'  that. 

Then  let  us  pray  that  come  it  may, 

As  come  it  will  for  a'  that. 
That  sense  and  worth,  o'er  a'  the  earth. 

May  bear  the  gree,  and  a'  that; 
For  a'  that,  and  a'  that. 

It's  coming  yet,  for  a'  that. 
That  man  to  man,  the  w'arld  o'er. 

Shall  brothers  be  for  a'  that. 

a  ,all;   gowd,so\d\    sae,  so:   birkie,  a  conceited  fellow;  ca'd,  called;  coof,  a  dunce;  aboon, 
above;  gnid,  good;  maunna  fa' ,  must  not  try;  bear  the  gree,  win  tlie  victory. 


7. 

> 
< 
> 

r 


TWF    WM  ITE    MOUSE 

WA  6  M  INOTON 


Deceabflr  11,    1906. 


l!y  dear  V'.r.   Collaerj 

I  gladly  accept  your  invitation  on  bohal/-  of   the 
Lincoln  Farm  Association  to  make  an  aJdress  on  the 
turcD,  and  at  the  log  cabin  its«lf  in  which  Lincoln  »as 
bom,   on  February  12,   1909,'  the  one-hundredth  arni- 
veraary  of  Lincoln's  birth,  and  therefore  one  of   the 
Bost   aignif  ic&nt  eventa  in  Aaierican  history.        As 
Mark  T*ain  has  well  oaid,  this  little  farm  is  "the 
111. tie  farm  that  raised  a  ILani"  and  I  count  myself 
fortunate  that  it  has  happened  to  me  to  be  able   as 
Preaidant  to  accept  the  invitation  to  make  "the  address 
at  Buch  a  placg  on  ouch  an  occaaion. 
Sincerely  youro. 


Ur.  Robert  J     Collier, 

Chairman  Lxacutivo  Coomltteo, 

The  Lincoln  Farm  Aseociation, 
74  3road-ay,  f.'e*  York. 


40 

By   Wm.   H.   Taft,   President-elect. 

[William  Howard  Taft  speaking  on  "Lincoln"  October  7,  on  the  Knox 
College  campus,  Galesburg,  111.,  at  the  exact  spot  where  Lincoln  and  Douglas 
engaged  in  debate  fifty  years  ago,  said:] 

"Certain  it  is  that  we  have  never  had  a  man  in  public  life  whose  sense 
of  duty  was  stronger,  whose  bearing  toward  those  with  whom  he  came  in 
contact,  whether  his  friends  or  political  opponents,  was  characterized 
by  a  greater  sense  of  fairness  than  Abraham  Lincoln.  We  have  never 
had  a  man  in  public  life  who  took  upon  himself  uncomplainingly  the 
woes  of  the  nation  and  suffered  in  his  soul  from  the  weight  of  them  as 
he  did.  We  have  never  had  a  man  in  our  history  who  had  such  a 
mixture  of  far-sightedness,  of  understanding  of  the  people,  of  common 
sense,  of  high  sense  of  duty,  of  power  of  inexorable  logic  and  of  con- 
fidence in  the  goodness  of  God,  in  working  out  a  righteous  result  as  this 
great  product  of  the  soil  of  Kentucky  and  Illinois." 


By  J.  McCan  Davis. 

Abraham  Lincoln  was  not  a  deity.  It  is  among  the  glories  of  the 
human  race  that  he  was  a  man.  He  stands  on  a  pinnacle  alone,  the 
greatest  man  in  our  history — the  most  wondrous  man  of  all  the  ages. 
The  world  will  forever  marvel  at  his  origin  and  his  career.  Whence 
came  this  wondrous  man  ?  Back  of  Lincoln — generations  before  he  was 
born — events  happened  which  helped  to  shape  and  mold  his  destiny. 
No  man  escapes  this  inheritance  from  the  past.  We  can  not  know 
what  seeds  were  sown  a  thousand  years  ago.  We  can  not  see  far  beyond 
the  loff  cabin  in  the  wilderness  of  Kentucky.  He  came-  to  us  with  no 
heritage  save  the  heart  and  the  brain  which  came  from  the  fathomless 
deeps  of  the  unknown. 

He  was  endowed  with  that  divine  gift  of  imagination  which  enabled 
him  to  behold  the  future.  The  emancipation  proclamation  loomed  in 
his  mind  when,  as  an  unknown,  friendless  youth,  he  stood  on  the  levee 
in  New  Orleans  and  saw  a  slave  auction  thirty  years  before  the  Civil 
War.  As  he  sat  in  the  White  House  he  saw  beyond  battles,  beyond  the 
end  of  the  war,  beyond  the  restoration  of  peace,  a  reunited  country — 
the  grandest  nation  on  the  globe,  under  a  single  and  triumphant  flag, 
moving  down  the  centuries  to  its  glorious  destiny. — From  How  Abra- 
ham Lincoln  Became  President. 


-11 

Bv  W.M.  11.  Hei;.\1)ux, 
[Law  partner  of  Mr  Lincoln] 

This  man,  tliis  long,  bony,  \viry,  sad  man,  floated  into  our  lountry 
in  1831,  in  a  frail  canoe,  down  the  north  fork  of  the  Sangamon  river 
friendless,  jioniiilcss,  jjowerless  and  alone — hogging  for  work  in  this 
city — ragged,  struggling  for  the  common  necessaries  of  life.  This  man, 
this  peculiar  man,  left  us  in  1801.  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
backed  by  friends  and  power,  by  fame,  and  all  liiiman  force;  and  it  is 
well  to  inquire  how. 

To  sum  up,  let  us  say,  here  is  a  sensitive,  dillident,  unobtrusive,  nat- 
ural-made gentleman.  His  mind  was  strong  and  deep,  sincere  and 
honest,  patient  and  enduring;  having  no  vices,  and  having  only  negative 
defects,  with  many  jiositivc  virtues.  Plis  is  a  strong,  honest,  sagacious, 
manly,  noble  life.  lie  stands  in  the  foremost  rank  of  men  in  all  ages — 
their  equal — one  of  the  best  tvpes  of  this  Christian  civilization — Spring- 
field. 1882.       . 


Opinion  of  ax  Ex-Slave,  Frederick  Douglas. 

[From  an  address  at  the  Inauguration  of  the  Freedmen's  Memorial  Monument 

to  Abraham  Lincoln.] 

We  are  here  to  express  our  grateful  sense  of  the  vast,  high,  and  pre- 
eminent services  rendered  to  ourselves,  to  our  race,  to  our  country,  and 
to  the  whole  world  by  Abraham  Lincoln. 

The  race  to  which  we  belong  was  not  the  special  object  of  his  con- 
sideration. Knowing  this,  I  concede  to  you,  my  wliite  fellow  citizens, 
that  you  and  yours  w-ere  the  object  of  his  deepest  affection  and  his  most 
earnest  solicitude.  You  are  the  children  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  We  are 
at  best  only  his  step-children,  children  by  adoption,  children  by  force 
of  circumstances  and  necessity.  To  you  it  especially  belongs  to  sound 
his  praises,  to  preserve  and  to  perpetuate  his  memory,  to  commend  his 
example,  for  to  you  he  was  a  great  and  glorious  friend  and  benefactor. 
Abraham  Lincoln  saved  for  you  a  country,  he  delivered  us  from  i 
bondage. 

The  name  of  Abraham  Lincoln  was  near  and  dear  to  our  hearts,  in  th-j 
darkest  and  most  perilous  hours  of  the  republic.  Wc  were  no  more 
ashamed  of  him  when  shrouded  in  clouds  of  darkness,  of  doubt,  3rd 
defeat  than  when  crowned  with  victory,  honor  and  glory.  Our  faith  in 
him  was  taxed  and  strained  to  the  uttermost,  but  it  never  failed.  De- 
spite the  mist  and  haze  that  were  about  him,  we  were  able  to  take  a 
comprehensive  view  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  to  make  reasonable  allow- 
ance for  the  circumstances  of  his  position.  We  came  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  the  hour  and  the  man  of  our  redemption  had  met  in  the  per- 
son of  Abraham  Lincoln.  It  mattered  little  to  us  what  language  he 
might  employ  upon  special  occasions;  it  mattered  little  to  us,  when  v.e 
fully  knew  him,  whether  he  ^vas  swift  or  slow  in  his  movements;  it 
was  enough  for  us  that  Abraham  Lincoln  was  at  the  head  of  the  creat 


42 

movement;  and  was  in  living  and  earnest  sympathy  with  that  movement 
which,  in  the  nature  of  things,  must  go  on  till  slavery  should  be  utterly 
and  forever  abolished  in  the  United  States. 

What  had  Abraham  Lincoln  to  do  with  us?  The  answer  is  ready, 
full,  and  complete.  Though  he  loved  Caesar  less  than  Home,  though 
the  Union  was  more  to  him  than  our  freedom  or  future,  under  his  wise 
and  beneficent  rule  we  saw  ourselves  gradually  lifted  from  the  depths 
of  slavery  to  the  heights  of  liberty  and  manhood. 

He  was  a  mystery  to  no  man  who  saw  and  heard  him.  Though  high 
in  position,  the  humblest  could  approach  him  and  feel  at  home  in  his 
presence.  Though  deep,  he  was  transparent;  though  strong,  he  was 
gentle ;  though  decided  and  pronounced  in  his  convictions,  he  was  toler- 
ant toward  those  who  differed  from  him,  and  patient  under  reproaches. 
The  image  of  the  man  went  out  with  his  words  and  those  who  read  them 
knew  him. 


By  Horace  White  the  Noted  Editor. 

[Upon  the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill,  Lincoln  saw  its  far-reach 
lug  consequences  and  so  aroused  was  he  against  it  that  he  came  forth  from 
his  political  retirement  to  take  the  great  issue  before  the  people.  He  fol- 
lowed Senator  Douglas  from  place  to  place  in  Illinois,  answering  his  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  this  bill.  Horace  White,  who  followed  Lincoln  through 
the  campaign  of  18.54  and  also  through  the  debates  of  1858,  reporting  the 
speeches  for  papers,  heard  and  thus  describes  the  first  speech  made  by  Mr. 
Lincoln  on  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  in  reply  to  Douglas  in  Springfield,  Ill- 
inois, October  4,  1854.] 

I  heard  the  whole  of  that  speech.  It  was  a  warmish  day  in  early 
October,  and  Mr.  Lincoln  was  in  his  shirt  sleeves  when  he  stepped  on  the 
platform.  I  observed  that,  although  awkward,  he  was  not  in  the  least 
embarrassed.  He  began  in  a  slow  and  hesitating  manner,  but  without 
any  mistakes  of  language,  dates,  or  facts.  It  was  evident  that  he  had 
mastered  his  subject,  that  he  knew  what  he  was  going  "to  say,  and  that 
he  knew  he  was  right.  He  had  a  thin,  high-pitched  falsetto  voice  of 
much  carrying  power,  that  could  be  heard  a  long  distance  in  spite  of  the 
bustle  and  tumult  of  a  crowd.  He  had  the  accent  and  pronunciation 
peculiar  to  his  native  State,  Kentucky.  Gradually  he  warmed  up  with 
his  subject,  his  angularity  disappeared,  and  he  passed  into  that  attitude 
of  unconscious  majesty  that  is  so  conspicuous  in  Saint-Gauden's  statue 
at  the  entrance  of  Lincoln  Park  in  Chicago.  I  have  often  wondered  how 
this  artist,  who  never  saw  the  subject  of  his  work,  could  have  divined  his 
presence  and  his  dignity  as  a  public  speaker  so  perfectly. 

HIS  impassioned  utterances. 

Progressing  with  his  theme,  his  words  began  to  come  faster  and  his 
face  to  light  up  with  the  rays  of  genius  and  his  body  to  move  in  unison 
with  his  thoughts.  His  gestures  were  made  with  his  body  and  head 
rather  than  with  his  arms.  They  were  the  natural  expression  of  the 
man,  and  so  perfectly  adapted  to  what  he  was  saying  that  anything  dif- 


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ferent  from  it  would  have  hwn  quite  iucouecivalile.  Sometimes  his  man- 
ner was  very  impassioned,  and  he  seemed  transfij^ured  with  his  subject. 
Perspiration  wouhl  stream  from  liis  face,  and  each  particular  hair  would 
stand  on  end.  Then  the  inspiration  that  possessed  him  took  possession 
of  his  hearers  also.  His  speaking  went  to  tlie  heart  because  it  came  from 
the  heart.  I  have  heard  celebrated  orators  who  could  start  thunders  of 
applause  without  changing  any  man's  opinion.  Mr.  Lincoln's  eloquence 
was  of  the  higher  type,  wliieh  ]»rodueed  conviction  in  others  liecause  of 
the  convietion  of  the  speaker  himself.  His  listeners  felt  that  he  believed 
every  word  he  said,  and  that,  like  ]\Iartin  Luther,  he  would  go  to  the 
stake  rather  than  abate  one  jot  or  tittle  of  it.  In  such  transfigured 
moments  as  these  he  was  the  type  of  the  ancient  Helirew  prophet  as  I 
learned  that  character  at  Sunday-school  in  my  cliildhood. 

That  there  were,  now  and  then,  electrical  discharges  of  high  tension 
in  Lincoln's  eloquence  is  a  fact  little  remembered,  so  few  persons  remain 
who  ever  came  within  its  range.  The  most  remarkable  outburst  took 
place  at  the  Bloomington  Convention  of  ]\[ay  29,  185G,  at  which  the 
anti-Xebraska  forces  of  Hlinois  were  firet  collected  and  welded  together 
as  one  party.  Mr.  John  L.  Scripps,  editor  of  the  Chicago  Democratic 
Press,  who  was  present — a  man  of  gravity  little  likely  to  be  carried  off 
his  feet  by  spoken  words — said : 

"Never  was  an  audience  more  completely  electrified  by  human  eloquence. 
Again  and  again  during  its  delivery  they  sprang  to  their  feet  and  upon  the 
benches  and  testified  by  long-continued  shouts  and  the  waving  of  hats  how 
deeply  the  speaker  had  wrought  upon  their  minds  and  hearts.  It  fused 
the  mass  of  hitherto  incongruous  elements  into  perfect  homogeneity;  and 
from  that  day  to  the  present  they  have  worked  together  in  harmonious  and 
fraternal  union." 

4 

The  speech  of  1854  made  so  profound  an  impression  on  me  that  I 
feel  under  its  spell  to  this  day.  It  is  known  in  history  as  ^Ir.  Lincoln's 
Peoria  speech.  Although  first  delivered  in  Springfield  on  October  4,  it 
was  repeated  twelve  days  later  at  Peoria.  Mr.  Lincoln  did  not  use  a 
scrap  of  paper  on  either  occasion,  but  he  wrote  it  out  afterwards  at  the 
request  of  friends  and  published  it  in  successive  numbers  of  the  weekly 
Sangamon  Journal  at  Springfield.  In  like  manner  Avere  the  orations  of 
Cicero  preserved.  In  this  way  has  been  preserved  for  us  the  most  mas- 
terly forensic  utterance  of  the  whole  slavery  controversy,  as  I  think. 


A  Southern  View. 

[!From  an  address  by  Hon.  Newton  C.  Blanchard,  Governor  of  Louisiana,  at 

Springfield  111.,  Feb.  12,  1907.1 

Let  us  here  tonight  take  fresh  hold  on  the  fact  that  the  war  closed 
more  than  forty  years  ago. 

As  we  look  back  over  the  decades  of  renewed  national  life  which 
have  elapsed  since  that  critical  time,  we  come  to  realize  in  the  fullest, 
and  point  the  world  to  the  fact,  that  our  system  of  government,  tried 
in  the  crucible  of  civil  war  and  reconstruction,  did,  indeed,  emerge  there- 
from stronger  than  ever,  not  merely  in  the  legal  lionds  guaranteeing  a 


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45. 

A  Lincoln  bihliograpliy,  conn)ilod  by  lion.  Daniel  Fish,  ol"  Minne- 
apolis, Avas  published  in  190(5  in  a  superb  volume  of  247  pages.  It  eon- 
tains  1,080  separate  titles.  Judge  Fisk  has  854  bound  volumes  and 
pam})hlets  in  his  own  oolleetions. 

^Ir.  D.  »S.  Passavant,  of  Zolienople,  I'a.,  has  a  collection  of  Lineolu- 
iana  in  foreign  langua<i:;es.  Lives  of  Lincoln  have  been  published  in 
the  French,  German,  Dutch,  Swedish,  Italian,  Russian,  Japanese,  Span- 
ish, Portuguese,  Greek,  Welsh  and  Hawaiian  tongues. 

The  largest  collection  of  Lincoluian  relics  as  distinguished  from  printed 
matter,  is  that  of  'Mr.  0.  H.  Oldroyd,  which  is  now  housed  in  the  build- 
ing were  Lincoln  died,  olG  Tenth  street,  Washington  City.  •  The  largest 
collection  of  Lincoln's  handwriting  in  existence  is  that  of  Jesse  W.  Weik, 
of  Greencastle,  Indiana.  Mr.  Weik  was  the  co-laborer  of  Wm.  H.  Hern- 
don  in  writing  the  life  of  Abraham  Lincoln.  Herndon  had  been  Lin- 
coln's law  partner  at  Springfield  for  many  years;  and  shortly  before  his 
death  he  gave  the  entire  contents  of  the  law  office  to  Mr.  Weik. 

CONCLUSION. 

So  we  see  that  Mr.  Lincoln's  death  did  not  take  place  at  the  culmina- 
tion of  his  fame,  but  that  it  has  been  rising  and  widening  ever  since 
and  shows  no  signs  of  abatement.  Of  no  other  American  of  our  times 
can  this  be  said.  Can  it  be  said  of  any  other  man  of  the  same  period  in 
any  part  of  the  world  ?  I  cannot  find  in  any  country  a  special  depart- 
ment of  literature  collecting  around  the  name  of  any  statesman  of  the 
nineteenth  century  like  that  which  celebrates  the  name  of  our  martyr 
President.  This  mass  of  literature  is  produced  and  collected  and  clier- 
ished  because  the  hearts  of  men  and  women  go  out  to  Lincoln.  It  is  not 
mere  admiration  for  his  mental  and  moral  qualities,  but  a  silent  re- 
sponse to  the  magnetic  influence  of  his  humanity,  his  unselfish  and 
world-embracing  charity.  And  thus  though  dead  he  yet  speaketh  to 
men,  women  and  children  who  never  saw  him,  and  so,  I  think,  he  will 
continue  to  speak  to  generations  yet  unborn,  world  without  end,  Amen. 


